Three years after violence erupted between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, Manipur is burning along a new fault line. In 2026, the conflict moved deep into the hills, pitting Kuki and Naga communities against each other in districts that largely stayed out of the initial violence.
Nearly 100 people have been killed in more than 300 incidents of violence in Manipur between January 1 and October 10, as per global conflict tracker ACLED. While the Imphal Valley has been comparatively calm, violence has clustered in the hill districts of Ukhrul, Kamjong, Kangpokpi, Noney, Tamenglong and Senapati.
READ | 5 Killed, 30 Houses And Shops Burned As Violence Breaks Out In Manipur Again
The trigger for the latest round of violence was small. On February 7, a Tangkhul Naga man was assaulted by a group of Kuki men at Litan Sareikhong in Ukhrul district. Within three days, riots erupted, about 50 houses had been burnt, a curfew had been imposed, and the internet was suspended across Ukhrul.
#Datafy | Three years after violence erupted between the Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities, Manipur is burning along a new fault line. In 2026, the conflict moved deep into the hills, pitting Kuki and Naga communities against each other in districts that largely stayed out of initial violence. Nearly 100 people have been killed in more than 300 incidents of violence in Manipur between January 1 and October 10, as per global conflict tracker ACLED. While the Imphal valley has been comparatively calm, violence has clustered in the hill districts of Ukhrul, Kamjong, Kangpokpi, Noney, Tamenglong and Senapati. The trigger for the latest round of violence was small. On February 7, a Tangkhul Naga man was assaulted by a group of Kuki men at Litan Sareikhong in Ukhrul district. Within three days, riots erupted, about 50 houses had been burnt, a curfew had been imposed, and the internet was suspended across Ukhrul.
— NDTV (@ndtv) October 16, 2026
The violence between the Kukis and Nagas has entered the deadliest phase, with September recording at least 19 reported deaths. In the first half of October, the violence had claimed at least 13 more lives. Twelve of them were reportedly killed in targeted killings and arson in Kamjong, Kangpokpi and Ukhrul districts in just two days ending October 10.
Hostages, Ambushes and Burning Villages
This year's violence has been marked by targeted killings, arson, ambush attacks, and hostage taking resulting in beheadings.
On May 13, three Kuki church leaders were shot dead in an ambush on Tiger Road in Kangpokpi. The same day, 18 Naga civilians were abducted. Six of them, all Nagas, were killed, and their mutilated bodies were found on June 10.
In early July, a Kuki and two Naga villages in Kamjong district were torched within hours of each other, followed by the Kuki village of Leikot in Noney. On August 27, five Naga civilians were killed in an ambush on the Imphal-Tamenglong (IT) Road.
In September, Kangpokpi district saw the highest number of violence incidents, including the burning of at least 41 houses in the Naga villages of Tapon and Makui.
Roads And Border Areas Are Burning
Our mapping shows that village burnings cluster along the roads, particularly the IT Road, and along the Myanmar border in Kamjong. At least 16 people have been killed in ambushes and targeted attacks on highways and roads this year, according to ACLED.
"Difficult terrain, dispersed settlements and vulnerable road stretches provide armed groups opportunities for movement and concealment, while making civilian travel susceptible to ambushes," writes Afsara Shaheen of the Institute for Conflict Management in a column.
On the Litan-TM Kasom stretch of NH-202, the road to Ukhrul, attacks this year killed a BSF constable, two Naga civilians, a truck driver from Bengal and a Nepali driver. Two Assam Rifles personnel were killed in a July ambush on the same highway near Noungshong Kong.
The roads have also become a tool of pressure. The United Naga Council blockaded NH-2 from June 11, extended the blockade to NH-37, NH-202 and NH-102A on September 9, and suspended it only on September 26 after tripartite talks.
Ceasefire Groups In The Dock
Naga organisations have accused Kuki-Zo groups under the Suspension of Operations (SoO) pact, chiefly KNF-P and KRA, in at least five deadly attacks between May and September. The groups deny involvement, and no official inquiry has established responsibility. Kuki bodies, in turn, blame NSCN-IM and ZUF-K. NSCN-IM has its own ceasefire with the Centre.
The SoO agreement was signed on August 22, 2008, between the Centre, the Manipur government and two Kuki-Zo umbrella groups, the Kuki National Organisation and the United People's Front. It was meant to bring the armed groups to political talks. Under the pact, the cadres of the two umbrella groups, the Kuki National Organisation (KNO) and the United People's Front (UPF), are meant to remain in 14 camps set up by the government, with their weapons locked.
Naga and Meitei groups demand the scrapping of SoO, alleging that the cadres often venture out of their camps to carry out attacks.
Even as the hills burn, armed groups in the Meitei-dominated Imphal valley are stepping up pressure. On October 15, a 12-hour shutdown called by the proscribed Kangleipak Communist Party-Apunba (KCP-Apunba) disrupted normal life across the state. The group called the shutdown to mark October 15 as "Black Day", commemorating Manipur's merger with India in 1949.