Daijiworld Media Network - Imphal

Imphal, Jul 22: At least five militants were killed in a fratricidal clash between members of the same armed group in Manipur’s Noney district on Tuesday, officials confirmed.

The gunfight reportedly broke out among cadres of the Chin Kuki Mizo Army (CKMA), a newly formed militant outfit that has not entered into any Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement with the government. The shootout occurred deep in the Daveijang forest near Longpi village — a remote and poorly connected area of western Manipur.

“A leadership dispute within the group appears to have triggered the violence,” a senior official based in Imphal said. A police team has been dispatched to the area to gather more information.

The CKMA is not among the SoO-signatory groups, making it one of several active non-state actors still operating outside the formal peace framework in the state.

Tuesday’s intra-group clash follows a similar violent episode in the region. On June 30, four people — including a 72-year-old woman — were killed in an ambush in Churachandpur district. According to police, unidentified gunmen opened fire on a Hyundai Creta travelling through Mongjang village, killing three men on the spot. The elderly woman, a bystander, was fatally injured by a stray bullet.

The United Kuki National Army (UKNA), an outlawed militant outfit, claimed responsibility for that attack. The victims were said to belong to the Kuki National Army (KNA), a group that signed the SoO agreement with the government in 2008.

Sources said the killings were part of an ongoing feud between Kuki factions, further deepening internal rifts among armed groups in the region.