Updated on Tuesday, November 03, 2009, 11:05 IST Tags:Peru, mine, attack

Lima: A group of armed assailants attacked a British-owned copper mine in northern Peru, killing two people and leaving two others missing, the director of the mine said.

"The attack was carried out by a group of 15 to 20 armed people, who have not been identified, who opened fire on the campsite," Jian Wu said yesterday, local director for Rio Blanco, a subsidiary of British company Monterrico Metals.

Two security agents were killed and two others were missing, he told Canal N television station.

Seven people were initially reported missing in the panic that followed the attack on the encampment, where about 20 people were working on environmental measures and infrastructure, but five of them were later found safe.

A police team has been dispatched to investigate the attack, which comes as locals protest the potential environmental impact of development at the Rio Blanco site, close to the country's border with Ecuador.



Interior Minister Octavio Salazar, speaking to the media in Lima, noted that there had been problems in the area between mining companies and the local population.

But the Rio Blanco official ruled out the possibility that the attack was carried out by locals, adding that the site "maintains good relations with the residents of the area." He, however, suggested that the attacks could be an attempt to force investors to flee the region.

Bureau Report