ANOTHER WAVE OF VIOLENCE has hit Manipur, as over 53 houses in 4 villages were set ablaze. On Wednesday, June 1, 2026, in the state’s Kamjong district situated along the Myanmar border, several villages inhabited by Kuki-Zo and Tangkhul Naga tribes were targeted with arson attacks. Around twenty-nine houses were burnt down along the Indian-Myanmar border, whereas twenty-four were attacked in Manipur’s western district Noney the following day on Thursday, June 2, 2026. The recent violence has reignited fears of escalation in the already unstable region.

While the extent and scale of the violent attacks remains unconfirmed as of yet, The Print reported that 25 people from both the communities have been killed.

Fresh Violence Erupts in Kamjong and Noney Districts 

In the early hours of Wednesday, June 1, 2026, unknown miscreants set all 15 houses located in Phaimol Village ablaze. No casualties were reported, as the village was temporarily vacated amidst security concerts with its residents seeking shelter in the adjacent Aishi Village. An Assam rifles camp — India’s paramilitary force for border security — is located in Aishi. 

See also: Massive Uproar in Manipur After Six Naga Men Found Dead, Protesters Clash With Security Forces Outside Imphal Hospital

As Phaimol is a Kuki-dominated village, a supposed retaliatory arson attack took place hours later in the Tangkhul-Naga occupied Shangkhalok village. Seven houses were partially burnt down but were saved.

A third incident took place at Kamjong district's Huimine Thana, also a Tanghul-Naga inhabited village situated between Phaimol and Shangkhalok. Around seven houses became the target of arson attacks allegedly carried out by Kuki-Zo militants.

Thursday morning, on June 2, 2026, another Kuki-zo village located in Noney district, Leikot, was attacked. The Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) — the local government of the Kuki-Zo tribal community — alleged that Naga militants used automatic weapons before setting 24 houses of the village on fire.

“In an attempt to save the villagers and their houses, village volunteers formed a chain to protect their houses, but the attackers had automatic guns and mortars. After a few minutes, the volunteers could no longer fight them and had to retreat,” a Kuki leader stated to The Print.

Kuki and Naga Groups Trade Allegations 

The KIM alleged that the cadres belonging to the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (Isak-Muivah), or NSCN-IM, and the Myanmar-based Shanni Nationalities Army, were the culprits behind the attack on Phaimol village. The apex body further commented that the violent incidents and attacks were a  “systemic campaign of violence and destruction targeting Kuki villages in the Tangkhul-dominated hill districts” in Manipur. 

See also: Manipur CM calls Kuki-Zo talks a 'good beginning' after first formal meeting

“The attack on Phaimol is not an isolated one, repeated attacks reveal a disturbing and sustained pattern of violence against Kuki habitations,” the KIM stated. 

Naga organizations have rejected these claims, instead accusing Kuki-Zo armed groups of perpetuating warfare in their villages by carrying out ‘strategic attacks.’ Naga village authorities alleged that Kuki armed groups, including the Kuki National Army-B (KNA-B), were responsible for torching houses in Kongkan Thana and Shangkalok — two Tangkhul Naga villages located near the international border. They claimed the attacks were carried out simultaneously and accused the Kuki groups of deliberately escalating tensions in the region.

A leader from the Eastern Command-Naga Village Guard claimed that houses in Phaimol were deliberately set on fire to “establish a basis for a preplanned attack on two Tangkhul Naga settlements.” He further alleged that around 20 armed Kuki men crossed the Namya river from Phaikoh, torched houses in the two villages, and destroyed 20 camps sheltering 365 Myanmar refugees at Kherongram.

(Edited by Anshika Verma)

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