‘Saw two drones’: What eyewitness said on Manipur ‘general warfare’ attack
Hindustan Times,7:07AM
2 Sep 2024
A resident of the village in Manipur – where one person was killed and several others were injured in an attack by militants on Sunday – recalled the horror, saying that he saw two drones flying over the area minutes before bombs were dropped.
According to the eyewitness, some of the houses were still burning.
“I saw two drones flying over our village before it dropped the bomb…Some of the houses in the village are still burning because of the bombs,” Sunil Ningthoujam, a resident of the village who is related to one of the victims and a general secretary of the village peace committee, told HT.
One woman was killed, and several others, including her daughter, were injured after militants opened fire and dropped grenades using drones near Koutruk in the Kangchup region in the Imphal West district of Manipur on Sunday. According to officials, the attack took place around 2 pm during a gunfight between the militants and security personnel – which continued till late evening.
The victim was identified as Ngangbam Ongbi Surbala, who was visiting her maternal home with her 11-year-old daughter, who was shot in her right arm. Meanwhile, the injured people included a local journalist, two police personnel, and other residents of the village, the police said.
The incident comes a day after Kuki-Zo groups carried out protest rallies against chief minister N Biren Singh in Kangpokpi and Churachandpur districts.
Manipur police blames ‘Kuki militants’ for attack
The Manipur police, in a statement, blamed the Kuki militants for what it said was a “significant escalation” using tactics “commonly used in general warfare”.
“While drone bombs have commonly been used in general warfares, this recent deployment of drones to deploy explosives against security forces and the civilians marks a significant escalation. The involvement of highly trained professionals, possibly with technical expertise and support, cannot be ruled out. Authorities are closely monitoring the situation, and the police are prepared to respond to any contingency that may arise,” the police wrote on X.
The police further appealed to the general public to maintain restraint.
Manipur home department’s statement
The Manipur home department, in a statement, condemned the attack, calling it “unfortunate”.
“The state government has learnt about the unfortunate incident of attack on unarmed Koutruk villagers using drone, bombs, and sophisticated weapons reportedly by Kuki militants. Such act of terrorising upon unarmed villagers is viewed very seriously by the state government – when it is putting all possible efforts towards bringing normalcy and peace in the state,” it said.
According to the state home department, such acts of creating “havoc among unarmed villagers” is seen as an “attempt to derail the the efforts taken by the state government to establish peace in the state”.
“The state government has already taken up immediate action to control the situation and to punish those who were involved in the attack on Koutruk Village, Imphal West,” it added.
(With inputs from Prawesh Lama, Thomas Ngangom)
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