Correspondent
IMPHAL, JUN 5: Three persons, including a woman, were killed and at least seven houses damaged when armed attackers struck Loibol Khullen village in Manipur’s Kangpokpi district in the early hours of Friday amid escalating Naga-Kuki tensions.
The pre-dawn attack took place under New Keithelmanbi police station limits. The deceased were identified as Letkhongam Haokip (34), his wife Tinmary Tuboi Haokip (25), and Jangminlal Haokip (30), all residents of the village.
Local and police sources said armed miscreants opened fire on the village, entered houses and shot the victims. The attackers also set fire to several houses, a Gypsy vehicle and a Mahindra pickup truck before fleeing.
Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM), the apex body of Kuki tribes, condemned the attack and said seven houses were destroyed along with extensive damage to property.
Manipur chief minister Yumnam Khemchand Singh strongly condemned the “heinous and cowardly” attack, calling the targeting of unarmed civilians “completely unacceptable and barbaric.” He said the government would not spare those responsible and directed police and central security forces to apprehend the perpetrators and step up security in vulnerable areas. He also ordered relief measures for affected families.
Security forces launched operations in and around the village soon after the incident.
The Rongmei Naga Council Manipur said the firing occurred in an area between Loibol Khullen (Kuki village) and Pongringlong (Charoipandongba) Part-1 (Naga village). It urged all parties to apologise and refrain from actions that could further escalate tensions in the state.