Khongbal Tangkhul attack: death toll rises to four as injured man dies

The death toll from the 19 October attack on the Sunulok (Sunurok) hill range near Khongbal Tangkhul in Manipur has risen to four after one of the injured died in hospital on Saturday morning, Ukhrul Times reported.

The man has been identified as Sorokhaibam Ibomcha, 58, son of the late Chandrasing and a resident of Nongsum Mayai Leikai. He had been under treatment at the Regional Institute of Medical Sciences (RIMS) in Imphal since the attack.

What happened on 19 October

The attack took place on the morning of Monday, 19 October, in the hills near Honghman village, known as Khongbal in Meitei, along the boundary between Imphal East and Kangpokpi districts. Early reports said the victims had gone into the forest to collect firewood when they were fired upon.

Manipur Police said three Meitei civilians were killed and three others injured. The area, close to Khamenlok, has seen repeated violence since ethnic clashes broke out in the state in May 2023.

Arrests and recoveries

On 20 October, Additional Director General of Police Lhari Dorjee Lhatoo told reporters in Imphal that a joint team of Manipur Police and the CRPF's CoBRA unit had detained three people during operations around S Phailenkot under Sagolmang police station. He said two of them had admitted to taking part in the killings and that the role of the third was being examined, EastMojo reported.

Police said 12 firearms, including an INSAS rifle, an AK-type rifle and a sniper rifle, along with 1,095 rounds of ammunition and other war-like stores, were recovered on the basis of the detainees' disclosures. In a separate search around the Sinai Suspension of Operations (SoO) camp, 17 people were detained whose identities did not match the camp's listed cadres, police said at the time.

The arrests have been questioned in Kangpokpi: on 28 October, displaced people there sought information about, and the release of, three men held after the Khongbal incident, India Today NE reported. Police have not publicly named any further suspects.

Shutdowns and rallies

The killings triggered a 48-hour statewide shutdown called by the Native People's Committee Manipur (NPCM) from midnight on 19 October, which closed markets, schools and offices across the valley districts and disrupted road transport. The committee demanded firm action against the armed groups it held responsible.

The attack was also among the incidents cited at Saturday's joint Meitei-Naga rallies in Imphal and the hill districts, which demanded an end to the Suspension of Operations pact with Kuki-Zo militant groups.

There was no fresh statement from Manipur Police on the investigation by Saturday afternoon. NEInsider will update this story when officials share more details.