Chief of banned Manipur-based UKNA militant outfit arrested in Mizoram

Security forces on September 24 arrested the alleged commander-in-chief of the banned Manipur-based United Kuki National Army (UKNA) in Mizoram's capital Aizawl, a senior police officer said.

Thangkhomang Haokip, who is stated to be the chief of the UKNA, was arrested during a joint operation by the Assam Rifles and the Subsidiary Intelligence Bureau (SIB), Aizawl Superintendent of Police Zosangliana said.

An official of a central intelligence agency said security forces were also conducting searches for other cadres of the banned outfit who are reportedly hiding in Aizawl.

Officials in Imphal said the UKNA is not a signatory to the Suspension of Operations (SoO) agreement, which was signed between the Centre, the Manipur government and several Kuki and Zomi militant groups.

The outfit is primarily active in the hill district of Churachandpur, particularly in the Henglep subdivision, officials said.

The arrest comes weeks after the National Investigation Agency (NIA) arrested S Palal Thadou, the self-styled finance head of the proscribed UKNA, in connection with an April 7 IED blast in Manipur's Bishnupur district that killed two children.

The ethnic conflict between the valley-based Meitei and hill-based Kuki communities, which erupted in May 2023, has claimed at least 306 lives, while 49 people remain missing and thousands have been displaced, according to official figures cited in the report.