Leikot village in Noney district after the attack. Photo: Special Arrangement.
Manipur’s trail of violence widened after an armed group attacked and torched a Kuki village in Noney district at around 5 a.m. on Thursday (July 2, 2026).
The Kuki Inpi (apex body) of Jiribam, Tamenglong, and Noney districts alleged that suspected members of the National Socialist Council of Nagalim (NSCN) carried out an “unprovoked” pre-dawn attack on Leikot Kuki village, reducing it to ashes.
The NSCN is also known as the Isak-Muivah faction of the National Socialist Council of Nagaland, one of the oldest extremist groups in the northeastern region.
The Kuki Inpi said the village volunteers, armed with licensed single-barrel firearms and limited resources, tried to defend the village but were overwhelmed by the attackers who used automatic rifles and mortar shells.
The incident happened more than 200 km west of the India-Myanmar border, where armed Naga groups allegedly torched the Phaimol Kuki village and Kuki extremists reportedly destroyed Huimin Thana and Kherongram villages in a retaliatory attack. The villages along the international border are in Kamjong district.
Thursday’s attack indicated an expansion of the Kuki-Naga conflict zone, which began in the Ukhrul district and spread to the adjoining Kamjong and Kangpokpi districts.
Condemning the attack on Leilot Kuki village, the Kuki Inpi questioned the inadequate security arrangements in vulnerable areas of Noney district and demanded immediate government intervention. It also sought a thorough and impartial investigation into such attacks to identify and punish those responsible.
The NSCN did not react, but Naga civil society organisations said the Kukis may have staged the Noney village incident.
Published – July 02, 2026 08:52 pm IST
