HYDERABAD, India Police killed eight Maoist rebels in a two-hour gun battle in a village in the southeastern state of Andhra Pradesh, a spokesman said Friday. Rebels from the banned people's war group had taken shelter in a house in Satyampally village, 100 kilometers (60 miles) north of Hyderabad, the state capital. Police raided their hide-out Thursday, exchanging gun fire and grenades.

Eight rebels died in the fighting, two of them women. Two policemen were wounded. Police had killed 10 activists of the rebel group in the same area March 31. Police said the slain rebels belonged to the Dubbak armed squad of PWG which is infamous for its violence. The battle brought the number of rebels killed this year to 75, while the Maoists have killed 40 people, including policemen.

The PWG, a Maoist-Leninist organization, formed in 1980, is waging an armed struggle for the creation of a communist state comprising the tribal areas of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra, Orissa and Madhya Pradesh. The group targets landlords and policemen, charging them with exploiting poor landless peasants. More than 5,500 people have died in fighting in the last 15 years. (AP)