One killed as eight villages attacked across Manipur hill districts

Violence erupted across Manipur's hill districts on Wednesday as at least eight villages—five Naga-inhabited and three Kuki-inhabited—came under attack. One person was killed and several houses were torched in incidents reported across Tamenglong, Noney, and Kangpokpi districts early Wednesday morning.

Paojangam Chongloi, a 36-year-old electricity lineman from Wakotphai village, died after sustaining bullet injuries while repairing damaged power lines near Lasan village in Tamenglong district. The attacks on three Kuki villages—Lasan, Songpibung, and T Kholmun—began around 4 a.m. with heavy firing.

Simultaneously, five Naga-inhabited villages came under attack by suspected militants who set houses ablaze before retreating under retaliation from village volunteers. Some villages had been abandoned earlier due to security threats, with residents sheltering in safer locations.