manipur-over-35-houses-torched-naga-kuki-trade-blame

More than 35 houses, including shelters housing Myanmar refugees, were set ablaze in fresh violence near the Indo-Myanmar border in Manipur's Kamjong district on Thursday, prompting Naga and Kuki organisations to trade allegations over the attacks.

 

The violence occurred near International Border Pillar 102 and unfolded in two phases, targeting villages in the sensitive border region and forcing hundreds of residents and displaced Myanmar nationals to flee.

 

According to reports, unidentified armed persons first attacked Phaimol Kuki village around noon, setting fire to about 15 houses. The violence later spread to the Tangkhul Naga villages of Kongkan Thana and Sangkalok, where another 20 houses, including shelters accommodating more than 200 refugees from Myanmar, were torched.

 

No casualties were immediately reported, but the incidents triggered fresh tensions between Naga and Kuki groups.

 

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The Eastern Command-Naga Village Guard (EC-NVG) alleged that the Kuki National Army-Burma (KNA-B) and armed Kuki militants were behind the attacks. It claimed that Phaimol village was deliberately set on fire to create a pretext for launching assaults on the Tangkhul Naga villages of Kongkan Thana and Sangkalok.

 

The Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) and the Committee on Tribal Unity (CoTU), however, rejected the allegation and condemned the burning of Phaimol village. They alleged that cadres of the NSCN (IM) were responsible for the attack and questioned the security arrangements in the area, claiming that Assam Rifles personnel had withdrawn from the locality a day before the violence.

 

The competing claims could not be independently verified.

 

Both Naga and Kuki organisations have appealed to the Centre and the Manipur government to intervene immediately, strengthen security in the border region and restore normalcy.

 

The latest incident comes amid continuing ethnic tensions in Manipur, where sporadic violence has persisted despite ongoing efforts by the security forces and the government to restore peace.