13 killed along the Manipur-Myanmar border

Imphal: At least 13 persons were killed in a fresh bout of violence in Manipur’s Tengnoupal district bordering Myanmar on the south, but there were no weapons next to the dead bodies, official sources said on Monday.

The officials in the security forces said that at around noon of Monday, based on an input receipt of a firefight that had broken out between two groups of militants at Letithu village near Saibol in Tengnoupal district, a team of security forces rushed to the area.

The forces found 13 bodies in the Leithu village which is located around 10 km Northwest of Saibol village, where there was recently an attempt to target an Assam Rifles patrol through an IED attack.

The police who reached the spot said that the identity of the deceased person is yet to be established.

However, the matter is under investigation, the police added.

This is the first major case of killing in the border area after the state witnessed communal violence between the Meiteis and Kukis on May 3, 2023.

No outfit has claimed responsibility for the killings till the time of filing this story.