Manipur experienced a year of intense turmoil in 2024, marked by escalating violence, displacement, and deepening divisions between the Meitei community in the valley and the Kuki tribes in the hills. The conflict, rooted in historical grievances and fueled by political tensions, resulted in numerous casualties, mob attacks, and drone strikes on civilian areas. The situation has led to widespread displacement, fear, and a sense of insecurity among the affected communities, with no signs of peace in sight.
Three persons including a 23-year-old-woman were injured after suspected militants launched a fresh bomb attack using a drone in Manipur's Imphal West district, police said on Tuesday.
The militants armed with sophisticated weapons surrounded the villagers of the Khamelok area bordering Imphal East district and Kangpoki district and launched the attack at around 1 am, the police said.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has registered three cases related to recent violence in Manipur, taking over investigations from Manipur Police. These cases include the murder of a woman, an attack on a CRPF post, and the burning of houses in Jiribam. The situation in Manipur remains volatile with protests continuing following the recovery of bodies of women and children. Violence has also spread to Jiribam, previously untouched by clashes, after a farmer's body was found in June.
Security forces on Wednesday stopped nearly 100 internally displaced people in Manipur from returning to their villages in Dolaithabi in Imphal East district, police said.
A shutdown has been observed since 5 am on Tuesday in Kuki-Zo majority areas in the hills to protest against the killing of suspected insurgents, the officials said.
The convoy was on its way to violence-hit Jiribam district.
The autopsy report of the 31-year-old tribal woman, who was killed in Manipur's violence-hit Jiribam district on November 7, revealed that she was subjected to third-degree torture and suffered 99 per cent burns.
A protester was killed in firing during a clash between security forces and a mob vandalising properties in Manipur's Jiribam district. The incident occurred late on Sunday night when agitators were protesting the killing of women and children abducted by militants. The deceased has been identified as K Athouba, who was in his twenties. The offices of the Congress and BJP, and a house belonging to Jiribam's Independent MLA were ransacked by a group of agitators. Meanwhile, an uneasy calm prevailed in Imphal Valley, where curfew remained enforced and internet services suspended after agitators vandalised and set ablaze properties belonging to several ministers and legislators.
Curfew was imposed in Manipur's Churachandpur on Monday as a precautionary measure following clashes between Hmar and Zomi communities. The decision came after a Hmar tribal leader was assaulted, leading to demands for the perpetrators to be identified. Prohibitory orders were also imposed in the district, banning unauthorized processions and assemblies, and restricting the carrying of weapons. The violence stemmed from an altercation involving the Hmar leader, who was accused of nearly hitting a two-wheeler rider. The incident sparked protests and clashes, with central security forces intervening to disperse mobs. The Hmar Village Volunteers have imposed a total shutdown in Pherzawl and Jiribam districts in response to the violence.
'Why is it that no other institutions are attacked? Why are only educational institutions run by Christians attacked?'
A mob led by Kuki-Zo women clashed with security forces in Manipur's Kangpokpi district on Tuesday, triggering fresh tensions in the ethnic strife-hit state.
One person was shot dead in his sleep while four others were killed in subsequent exchange of fire between armed men of two warring communities, a police officer said.
The Kuki-Zo Council called for a 13-hour shutdown in Manipur's hill areas on Tuesday, demanding an investigation into the death of 11 people in a clash with security forces in Jiribam. The shutdown, which began at 5 am, saw schools, markets, and public transport remain closed. Various Kuki-Zo organizations, including the Kuki Students' Organisation, the Zomi Students' Federation, and the Hmar Students' Association, demanded a probe into the incident, accusing the Central Reserve Police Force of "treacherous murder." The Hmar Village Volunteers, who were identified by the Kuki-Zo groups as the victims, condemned the incident and called for intervention from the Ministry of Home Affairs.
Police said, "Initially, two bombs exploded, followed by 350 to 400 rounds of fire."
The incident took place as several dozens of armed men opened indiscriminate fire on Koutruk village in the periphery of Imphal Valley from the adjoining hills in Kangpokpi district, a police officer said.
A village volunteer was killed in a gunfight between two warring communities in Manipur's Kangpokpi district, officials said on Thursday.
A while later, 'Meira Paibis' -- civilian group of Meitei women -- gathered at the spot, and demanded that the weapons be handed over to them, he said.
Autopsy reports of the victims of the Jiribam killings in Manipur have revealed brutal injuries, including multiple bullet wounds, severe trauma, and missing body parts. The reports, released on Wednesday, detail the horrific injuries suffered by the victims, including a 10-month-old infant, who had both eyeballs missing and a bullet injury to the knee. The killings, which took place in November, are part of the ongoing ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-Zo groups in Manipur.
'Till the time the chief minister continues to have command over the state forces, we don't think that gives any hope of peace coming back to Manipur.'
ESU coach Ngampao Kipgen, a member of the Kuki tribe, told Reuters he was forced to flee to the hills with his family after his house was burned down.
The National Investigation Agency (NIA) has arrested a suspected terrorist for his alleged links with Myanmar-based rebel groups and conspiring to wage war against India by exploiting the current ethnic unrest in Manipur, an official said.
The villagers were venting their anger after militants burnt down at least 100 abandoned houses including the residence of Sugnu Congress MLA K Ranjit at Serou in Kakching district on Saturday midnight.
The Supreme Court on Monday directed the Manipur government, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the National Investigation Agency (NIA) to file reports elaborating on the status of probe and the charge sheets filed in cases of ethnic-violence to help it take a decision on whether the trials can commence in Assam or be undertaken in Manipur.
Armed vigilante groups have been taking the law into their own hands in parts of Manipur, in the wake of ethnic rioting earlier, thus complicating the peace process. At times, militant groups have joined in the fray, creating an even more volatile cocktail of ethnic tension.
Manipur witness more violence on Tuesday when unidentified armed men, suspected to be cadres of banned terror groups, attacked people from the tribal community in the morning killing three of them in Kangpokpi district, officials said.
Fresh clashes broke out between people belonging to Zomi and Hmar tribes in Manipur's Churachandpur district, hours after a peace settlement was reached between the apex bodies of the two communities. The Zomi Students' Federation imposed a shutdown in the district after a group of men tried to take down a flag of a Zomi militant outfit. Several persons were injured in the clashes. Meanwhile, MLAs and tribal organisations appealed for peace, urging the administration to take necessary measures to restore law and order.
With respect and gratitude we honour the memory of soldiers who sacrificed their lives in Operation Sindoor.
Following the violence, the authorities clamped curfew for 24 hours in the area and reduced the curfew relaxation hours in several other districts.
The shootout occurred at a place between Haraothel and Kobsha villages though the police are not yet sure about how it began.
The latest clashes began after the army and para-military forces commenced combing operations to de-arm communities in order to bring peace, officials said.
Terrorists belonging to banned groups United National Liberation Front (UNLF) and People's Liberation Army (PLA) were allegedly part of the mob from which gunshots were fired at an army officer that left him severely injured in Manipur, officials said Monday.
Roshibina had won a bronze in the 2018 edition at Jakarta.
The incident occurred at Kwakeithel Mayai Koibi under Lamphel police station a day after classes 1 to 8 began in the state after two months because of the violence.
A group of people tried to gherao the residence of Union Minister of State for External Affairs Rajkumar Ranjan Singh in Imphal East district claiming that the government in the strife-torn state is not doing enough to protect locals from militants belonging to another community, officials said on Friday.
The Manipur Police personnel allegedly drove the two women from the Kuki-Zomi community, who had sought refuge in their official Gypsy, to a mob of around 1,000 Meiti rioters in Kangpokpi district, the Central Bureau of Investigation chargesheet has said.
'Hatred increases with every killing.' 'It sets one family against another.' 'The sooner it is stopped, the better.'
A group of people torched the office building of the Range Forest Officer in Tuibong area around midnight, and several fire tenders were pressed into service to douse the flames, they said.
Firing between security forces and armed men has been reported from Pallel area of Manipur's Tengnoupal district since early hours of Friday, officials said.
Terming such 'unwarranted interference' detrimental to the timely response by security forces, the Army's Spears Corps shared a video on Twitter late on Monday of some such incidents.
