New Delhi/Imphal:

At least 11 suspected Kuki insurgents were shot dead in an encounter with the security forces in Manipur’s Jiribam district today, sources said. The situation is fluid and more details are awaited.

Some Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) soldiers were also injured in the attack by the suspected Kuki militants in the district bordering Assam, sources said.

The encounter began after the suspected Kuki insurgents launched a massive attack from two sides on a police station in Jiribam, sources said. There is also a relief camp for internally displaced people next to the police station. The attackers may have looked to target the camp too, sources said.

This police station in Jiribam’s Borobekra had been targeted several times in recent months.

After attacking the police station, the suspected Kuki insurgents spread out towards a small settlement in Jakurador Karong, 1 km from the police station, and began setting houses on fire, sources said, adding they simultaneously engaged in a gunfight with the security forces.

Tension has been high in Jiribam since last week when a fresh round of violence broke out.

On Thursday last, a woman from the Hmar tribe was killed by suspected Meitei insurgents, who also set houses on fire in Jiribam. Her husband in a police case alleged she was raped before she was killed.

A day later, a woman from the valley-dominant Meitei community was shot dead by suspected Kuki insurgents while she was working in a paddy field.

This morning, suspected Kuki insurgents opened fire from the hills in Imphal East District, leaving a farmer injured. The attacks during the paddy harvest season have raised concerns as farmers are getting reluctant to go to their fields, officials said.

The CRPF is the country’s biggest Central Armed Police Force (CAPF). It has evolved into an efficient fighting force with huge successes in anti-Maoist operations in Jharkhand and other states. It made significant contributions to eradicating Naxalism, particularly in West Bengal and in the Kaimur and Rohtas regions of Bihar.