Ten gunmen killed in gunfight with security forces in India's remote northeastern state of Manipur , said representatives of the authorities quoted by Reuters and BTA.
The men are believed to have attempted to attack a police station.
Separate incidents of violence rocked Manipur last year when the state's majority community – The Meitei and the Kuki tribe clashed after a court ordered the state government to consider extending special economic benefits and quotas for government jobs and education enjoyed by the Kuki to the Meitei.
At least 250 people have been killed and around 60,000 displaced since the clashes broke out in May 2023
„Goons attacked the police station earlier this afternoon,” the Deputy Commissioner of Jiribam state district, where the shooting took place, said today – Krishna Kumar.
The attackers were killed after security forces retaliated, Kumar said, adding that the region has been under tension since last week when a 31-year-old woman from the local communities was burnt to death.
Manipur, a state of 3.2 million people, has been divided into two ethnic enclaves since the start of the conflict – the valley controlled by the Meitei community and the hilly area dominated by the Kuki tribe. The two areas are separated by a strip of uninhabited land that is under the surveillance of federal paramilitary forces.
A local police official said the slain attackers were from the large Kuki-zo tribal community.
One member of the security forces was injured and is in a critical condition, he added.