Imphal: A fresh attack was carried out by suspected militants in the Kadangband area of Manipur’s Imphal West district in the early hours of Wednesday, police said.
Militants from their hill positions in Kangpokpi district fired several rounds from sophisticated arms and hurled bombs at the low-lying Kadangband area in Imphal West district around 1 am, a police officer said.
Village volunteers deployed in the area retaliated with gunfire, while additional security forces were swiftly deployed to the area to control the situation.
No injuries were reported in the firing, the police said.
The attack forced several villagers residing in makeshift homes to flee to safer locations.
Kadangband area has witnessed several attacks by suspected militants since violence broke out in the state in May 2023.
The Union Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) in its annual report for the year 2023-24 has said that Manipur, which has been reeling under prolonged ethnic strife, which started in May 2023 between the majority Meitei group and Kuki tribe, has accounted for about 77 percent of the total violent incidents in the entire northeastern region in the year 2023.
The MHA said that in 2023, the state witnessed an increase in violent incidents due to ethnic clashes and this resulted in an increase in the number of casualties of civilians and security forces personnel as compared to 2022.
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The report said, that among the total 243 violent incidents that occurred in the Northeast, 187 took place in Manipur alone.
