At least 30 houses were set ablaze and one person was injured after armed individuals attacked several Liangmai Naga villages in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district early Tuesday, police said, in the latest violence along the Imphal-Tamenglong road.
According to a Hindustan Times report, the attacks came a day after three civilians, including two women, were killed and four injured in an attack on N Teikhang, a Kuki village in the same district.
According to Kangpokpi police, armed individuals attacked Tapon Khullen, Tapon Khunou and Makui Pipuram around 4 am. At least 30 houses, along with vehicles and other property, were damaged or burnt, while one villager was injured. Security forces, including the CRPF and its CoBRA unit, were deployed to the area and launched search operations.
Local reports said the violence extended to four Liangmai Naga villages along the Imphal-Tamenglong road, with Tapon Namsan and Makui Pipuram reportedly looted and burnt, while firing was reported in Thonglang Akut and Upper Tapon until around noon. A pastor from Tapon was reportedly injured.
The attack was followed by prolonged gunfire, with a senior police officer saying firing continued until around 12.30 pm. Police were still assessing the full extent of the damage.
The latest violence follows a series of attacks along the corridor. On August 27, four Naga civilians were killed in an ambush, while three Kuki civilians were killed in the Teikhang attack on August 31. No group has officially claimed responsibility for either attack.
Kuki civil society organisations have alleged the involvement of NSCN-IM and ZUF-K in the Teikhang attack, but the claim has not been independently verified.
The Committee on Tribal Unity has meanwhile called a 24-hour shutdown of National Highway-2 from 5 am Tuesday to 5 am Wednesday in protest against the Teikhang killings and attacks on Kuki-Zo settlements. Essential services, including medical and fire services, have been exempted.
The fresh violence comes amid a wider breakdown of relations between Kuki-Zo and Naga communities in parts of Manipur. The state has already been gripped by ethnic conflict since May 2023, when clashes between Meitei and Kuki communities left more than 260 people dead and displaced tens of thousands.
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