Just two days after four Kuki-Zo civilians were gunned down by unidentified armed miscreants, two more — both of them women — were shot dead in a small, remote Kuki settlement in Manipur’s Tamenglong district.

The incident occurred around 3 pm in Leijangphai near Muktokhal on Tuesday, sources said. The deceased has been identified as Phalneichong (Chonga) Sitlhou, 76, wife of late Seidou Sitlhou, and Kimjalhing (Kimboi) Singson, 30, daughter of Paosei Singson.

The two were engaged in routine activities on the farm when they were ambushed by unidentified armed assailants, said sources. Singson, it is learnt, had just returned home after her nursing course to assist her parents in farming.

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Officials, quoting locals said, few kutcha farmhouses were also set on fire by the miscreants, and several villagers could not be traced following the attack.

Tuesday’s incident has once again heightened tensions between communities in the region, which is already plagued by the larger ethnic conflict playing out in Manipur.

The Jiribam-Tamenglong region alone has seen three attacks this week.

On Sunday, four people, including two women, were killed and few others injured in two separate attacks on the Kuki settlements of Longpi and Tollen — also in Tamenglong district.

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The Kuki-Zo Council (KZC) has condemned the attacks, calling them an alarming pattern. “The continued targeting of civilians raises concerns about attempts to terrorise and drive Kuki-Zo communities from their settlements,” it said.

It also urged the Manipur government and the Centre to protect vulnerable communities, bring the perpetrators to justice, and take firm, lawful action against armed groups attacking civilians.

In addition, the Council has also issued a directive urging Civil Society Organisations of the Kuki-Zo community, until further notice, not to bury the victims, whom they say are allegedly killed by a rival (Naga) group.

“With immediate effect, no Kuki-Zo killed by armed Naga groups in Manipur shall be buried. The mortal remains of every such victim shall instead be preserved in the nearest available cold-storage facility until further directions are issued by the Kuki-Zo Council,” it said.

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Following Sunday’s incident, the Naga Village Authority of the neighbouring Kaimai settlement described the perpetrators as an unidentified group and expressed concern that the attacks could create suspicion and division among communities in the region. It urged all to exercise restraint, and community leaders and CSOs to reaffirm peace and understanding.

Interestingly, the settlement of Leijangphai has been contested over by Jiribam and Tamenglong for jurisdiction. The ethnic conflict that erupted in Manipur in May 2023 has claimed hundreds of lives and has left thousands homeless.