13 killed as fresh bout of violence hits Manipur

Following a slew of violent incidents that have rocked the state since May 2023, Manipur saw new acts of violence. In the Tengnoupal district of Manipur, two militant factions engaged in a gunfight that resulted in the deaths of thirteen persons, according to media sources citing officials. The tragedy happened on Monday afternoon in the village of Leithu.

“A group of militants on their way to Myanmar were ambushed by another group of insurgents dominant in the area,” an official in the hill district was quoted as saying by news agency PTI.

When security forces arrived at the scene, he reported that they had discovered 13 bodies so far. Although the identities of the deceased were unknown, they didn’t seem to be locals.

According to media reports, the police stated that it seems the deceased were not from the Leithu area and may have come from another location after which they got into a battle with another group.

“Around noon, inputs were received of a gunfight that had broken out between two groups of militants at Letithu village near Saibol in Tengnoupal district. The nearest security forces were about 10km away from the spot. Once our forces moved in and reached the place, they found 13 bodies in the Leithu village. The forces did not find any weapons next to the bodies,” a police official told the media.

According to the officer, it seems that the deceased were not from the Leithu region and may have arrived from somewhere else before getting into a shooting with another gang. The deceased’s identity was not verified by the police, though.

“The police have reached the spot. They will probe the matter,” the officer added.

Notably, Tengnoupal district shares a porous border with Myanmar which has witnessed a lot of internal strife and tribal conflict in recent times.

The Manipur government has brought up the problem of antisocial characters in border districts with Myanmar on several occasions.