Gunfire reported in Manipur’s Ukhrul, residents allege continued firing since Thursday

Guwahati: Gunfire was reported in Manipur's Ukhrul district, with residents of Sinakeithei village alleging that firing has continued since Thursday afternoon. Some residents said insurgents opened fire with automatic weapons from multiple directions at 3.20 pm on Thursday.

"There was retaliatory firing, which lasted for an hour," one of these people said. The area has both Kuki and Thangkhul Naga populations.

"The firing continued this morning. Though no injury is reported. There is panic in the area," said a senior official, who did not wish to be named.


Manipur has witnessed clashes between Nagas and Kukis in the past. The Kuki-Naga conflict that began in 1992 and lasted six years killed more than 1,000 people. The 2023 Kuki-Meitei violence claimed 360 lives. Thangkhul is the largest Naga tribe in Manipur and is spread across five to six districts.

More than 260 people were killed, over 1,500 injured and more than 60,000 displaced after ethnic violence broke out between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities on May 3, 2023, following a 'Tribal Solidarity March' in the hill districts to protest the Meitei community's demand for Scheduled Tribe status.