Dimapur, May 8 (MExN): The United Naga Council (UNC) and the All Naga Students’ Association, Manipur (ANSAM) have condemned the recent attacks on Naga villages along the Indo-Myanmar border in Manipur’s Kamjong and adjoining areas, alleging involvement of armed militants operating from across the border and demanding immediate intervention from the Government of India and the Manipur Government.
In separate statements issued on May 8, both organisations alleged that heavily armed militants crossed into Indian territory from Myanmar during the early hours of May 7 and carried out attacks on several villages, including Namlee, Wanglee, Ashang Khullen (KAKA), Z Choro and Sinakeithei.
The UNC alleged that more than 100 armed militants breached the international border around 4 am on May 7 and launched coordinated attacks on villages in the area. According to the council, the assailants, “employing sophisticated weaponry, fired indiscriminately upon civilians and set dwelling houses ablaze.” It further alleged that “women, children, and the elderly have been forced to flee into the deep jungles, abandoned without food, shelter, or medical care.”
The council further alleged that another attack took place at Sinakeithei village later the same day from the Lungthar hill range, during which civilians were injured in heavy gunfire. It stated that the affected villages are ancestral Naga settlements inhabited by different Naga tribes.
The UNC demanded “immediate and decisive military action by the Government of India to neutralize the foreign aggressors and restore the sanctity of the international Indo-Myanmar border.” It also called for urgent deployment of Manipur state forces in the affected areas, emergency humanitarian assistance for displaced villagers, and a “high-level, time-bound inquiry” into how armed groups were able to cross the border undetected.
The organisation further alleged lapses on the part of security forces deployed along the international border and expressed concern over what it termed “inaction” during the attacks. “The forces stood as mute spectators while our villages burned,” the UNC alleged.
Meanwhile, ANSAM also condemned what it described as “cross-border aggression” targeting Naga villages in Kamjong and Ukhrul districts. The student body alleged that coordinated attacks had been continuing in villages including TM Kasom, Ringui, Thoyee, Sharkaphung, S Laho and Sinakeithei before escalating on May 7 in Z Choro, Namlee, Wanglee Market and Ashang Khullen.
ANSAM alleged that houses were burned, civilians displaced and several villagers injured during the attacks. “Women, children, and elderly villagers were forced to flee into forests and wildernesses under horrifying conditions of terror, displacement, and devastation,” the student body stated.
It further claimed that some villagers had gone missing and called for immediate search and rescue operations as well as protection and rehabilitation measures for affected families.
The student body also expressed concern over the alleged use of advanced weaponry and drones during the attacks and questioned the effectiveness of security deployment in the region. It demanded the deployment of Manipur state forces and specialised commando units in vulnerable villages.
Both organisations urged the Government of India and the Manipur Government to take immediate steps to restore security in the affected areas and ensure protection of civilians living along the Indo-Myanmar border.
