At least five Para Commandos of Indian Army were injured, including two critically, after a group of terrorists ambushed the security forces at a remote location along Indo-Myanmar border in Manipur on Saturday.
United National liberation Front of Western South East Asia (UNlFW) has claimed the responsibility for the attack and said that a group of Peoples’ liberation Army (PlA) militants, who are constituent of UNlFW, attacked the 21 Para Regiment of Indian Army near Sajik Tampak in Chandel District.
A Defence spokesman based in Manipur capital Imphal confirmed this on Saturday and added that the incident took place Sajik Tampak village, located close to Indo-Myanmar border in Chandel district of the State.
“It was a foot patrol and the groups of para commandos were returning to their base after carrying out an operation in areas along the Indo-Myanmar border. The militants first triggered an IED and then started firing indiscriminately. Although the security forces retaliated, five of them sustained bullet injuring. Two of the five commandos received critical injuries,” said the spokesman.
“All the give Commandos have been airlifted to the Army hospital at leimakhong, near Imphal,” he said adding that it is not known whether there is any causality on the part of militants.
It may be mentioned here that the Sajik Tampak had been a stronghold of the militants for a long time before the security forces forced the militants to shift their camps from the area to the other side of the border.
In June last year, the anti-talk NSCN (K) militants ambushed the security forces at Chandel district and killed 18 soldiers and injured 11 others. There has been a surge in such attacks in the northeastern states like Nagaland, Arunachal Pradesh and ion Manipur, particularly after the NSCN (K) abrogated from the ceasefire agreement with the government of India in March last year.
Unlike the Indian boundary with Pakistan and Bangladesh, India and Myanmar share an unfenced 1,643 km border and permit a ‘free movement’ regime upto 16 km across on either side. Militants often take advantage of the situation and sneak over to the other side of the border after carrying out subversive activities here.
The UNlFW is a militant group formed jointly by the anti-talk faction of Ulfa, the NSCN (K), Kamatapur liberation Organization (KlO), anti-talk faction of National Democratic Front of Boroland (NDFB) and CorCom, a joint platform of several militant outfits of Manipur.