GUWAHATI: After a lull of about 10 days in the ethnic violence in Manipur, unidentified gunmen shot dead three Kuki-Zo tribals in the wee hours of Friday.
The incident took place on the outskirts of Thouwai Kuki, a Kuki village in the Naga-majority Ukhrul district. The bodies of the three youths aged between 24 years and 35 years
3 Kuki-Zo tribals killed by unidentified gunmen in Naga-majority Ukhrul in Manipur. Police suspect it as continuation of ongoing violence @NewIndianXpress @TheMornStandard @santwana99 @Shahid_Faridi_
— Prasanta Mazumdar (@prasmaz_tnie) August 18, 2023
The attack was carried out at a place 2 km from Thouwai Kuki. The village is about 8-10 km from one end of Meitei-majority Imphal valley and 45-50 km from district headquarters Ukhrul. The district is home to Tangkhul Naga tribals.
The police viewed the incident as the continuation of the ethnic violence.
“Three persons were killed in the incident. Kind of war is going on between two ethnic groups, so we suspect it to be the continuation of that,” Ukhrul Superintendent of Police Ningsem Vashum told this newspaper.
“We feel the villagers were guarding the village when the attack was carried out on the village outskirts,” the SP said.
This was the second such incident in the district after the violence had broken out on May 3.
“We don’t know how many of them came to carry out the attack. An operation by the police and security forces is underway to track and nab the assailants,” Vashum said.
He added that the bodies were brought to the village and would be sent for post-mortem.
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