December 26, 2007	Wednesday	Zilhaj 15, 1428

BEIJING, Dec 25: China and India wrapped up their first-ever joint military exercises on Tuesday with a drill in which they “wiped out” a group of supposed terrorists along their border, state press reported.

In the mock scenario, 56 members of an unnamed international terrorist organisation had taken hostages after establishing a training base along the two nations’ border, according to the Xinhua news agency.

“The finale manoeuvre involved establishing a joint command post... before wiping out a group of ‘terrorists’ and rescuing ‘hostages’,” Xinhua said.

The three-hour drill was the culmination of five days of exercises between about 100 troops from each of the two nations’ militaries in southwest China’s Yunnan province, which borders India. Chinese officials had initially said the exercises were meant to last for nine days.

The Xinhua report said they were only a five-day operation, without giving a reason for the different time frame. “This is a momentous occasion for us,” the report quoted Lt General Susheel Gupta, deputy chief of India’s Army Staff, saying.—AFP