Guwahati: Four Tangkhul Naga civilians, including a father and son, were reportedly killed in an attack at a remote village along the Myanmar border in Manipur’s Kamjong district on Thursday.The Tangkhul Naga Long (TNL) blamed the Myanmar-based Kuki National Army-Burma (KNA-B) and other armed Kuki groups for the incident at Pilong village, about 35 km from Kamjong district headquarters.The allegation could not be independently verified.The deceased were identified as Phami Jajo and his father, Vareshim Jajo, both from Kangpat Khullen; Betterson Jajo of Kangpat Khunou; and Ningthem Kashak of Zingsui village. A fifth person reportedly escaped and informed the police. The attack took place at around 1.30 pm near international border pillars 91 to 93 in the Kangpat area. Security teams from Kamjong were sent to the site to recover the bodies.Condemning the killings as “brutal”, the TNL announced a 24-hour emergency total shutdown across its jurisdiction from 7 am on Friday to 7 am on Saturday.The incident comes amid escalating Kuki-Naga violence in Manipur, which began in February this year after the Kuki-Meitei conflict that erupted in May 2023 had largely subsided. The violence has reportedly claimed at least 40 lives on both sides, including 11 deaths in attacks over the past 10 days.The violence has continued despite the deployment of multiple security forces across the state. The CRPF has deployed around 20,000 personnel in nearly 200 companies, including two CoBRA battalions comprising about 2,000 commandos.The BSF also has a significantly large deployment along with ITBP and SSB. Assam Rifles and Army also continue to be deployed, particularly for counter-insurgency.
