Five killed in fresh violence in strife-torn Manipur

Imphal, Five people, including a woman, were killed in fresh clashes among armed groups in Manipur's Kamjong and Ukhrul districts, officials said on Saturday.

A 22-year-old man and a woman, aged 42, were killed in the Kuki-dominated Chassad village in Naga-majority Kamjong district, they said.

The woman, a mother of five, was shot near her neck on Friday night and died within minutes, the officials said.

Her killing triggered an exchange of fire between Kuki and Naga armed groups, which continued on Saturday morning. The man was killed in the ensuing clashes, during which 10 houses were also torched, they added.

The district authorities imposed prohibitory orders under Section 162 of the Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita within a 400-metre radius of Chassad police gate junction to prevent further violence. The restrictions prohibit the assembly of five or more people.

In a separate incident, suspected militants entered Ningchou village, a Tangkhul Naga settlement near the Myanmar border, in Kamjong, and started firing, the officials said.

Two persons, identified as Ngachanso Ningshen, aged 35, and 48-year-old Leishishan Leishadang, were shot dead, they said.

Security forces rushed to the village after the incident and brought the situation under control.

Local villagers claimed that the attackers fled towards the Myanmar side after firing.

The bodies have been sent to the Kamjong district hospital for post-mortem examinations, the officials said.

In a separate incident in Ukhrul district, a 40-year-old man, Sandeep Rai, was shot dead near Chepu Yaolen after suspected militants opened fire at his vehicle. The man died inside the four-wheeler he was driving, the officials said.

A heavy exchange of fire was also reported between armed groups at Makui Ashang and Tapon in Kangpokpi district.

More than 40 people have been killed and dozens of houses torched since violence between Kuki and Naga communities broke out in February this year.

The violence has largely been concentrated in Ukhrul, Kamjong, Kangpokpi, Tamenglong and Noney districts, as well as parts of Senapati district.

Security forces have been conducting search operations and area domination exercises in the fringe and vulnerable localities across all districts of Manipur since ethnic violence broke out three years ago.

More than 260 people have been killed and thousands rendered homeless in ethnic strife between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups since May 2023.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.