Churachandpur, Manipur, India

Unidentified gunmen ambushed a car, killing an extremist leader from the Kuki-Zo tribal community and his two bodyguards. An elderly woman was also killed as a stray bullet hit her.

No extremist group has claimed responsibility for the attack, which is said to be an outcome of a factional feud.

Preliminary reports said the assailants ambushed the car that Thenkhothang, alias Thahpi Haokip, the 48-year-old ‘deputy commander-in-chief’ of the Kuki National Army (KNA), was travelling in along with his two bodyguards. Security personnel, who rushed to the spot, found more than a dozen empty shells near the vehicle, indicating that the assailants fired a volley of shots from a close range.

The two bodyguards were identified as Seikhogin, 34, and Lengouhao, 35. The slain woman was identified as 72-year-old Phalhing from Koite village.

Manipur has been scarred by an ethnic conflict between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo people since May 2023. The scale of violence reduced after the imposition of President’s Rule in February, but sporadic incidents of violence continue to occur.