Ten Kuki militants killed in gunbattle

Ten militants were killed and four injured in a fierce gunbattle between two Kuki groups at a remote area in Manipur, police said on Thursday. The gunfight between the Kuki Liberation Army (KLA) and Kuki National Front-Presidium (KNF-P) took place in interior Seijang hill area on the border between Imphal East and Senapati districts on Thursday and lasted for five hours, they said.The gunbattle could be the result of a fight for territorial control of areas inhabited by the Kuki tribes, police said.The injured were brought to a private hospital in Imphal and the condition of some was stated to be critical.Security personnel have rushed to Seijang hill area.Official sources said both KNF-P and KLA were signatories of the Suspension of Operation (SOO) agreement with the state government and security agencies for initiating the peace process.Under the agreement, which was signed about a year ago, police and security personnel have suspended operations against the militant outfits.Under the agreement, the militants were not allowed to carry arms.Manipur Chief Minister O. Ibobi Singh had on Thursday warned another signatory of the SOO agreement, the Kuki National Army (KNA), for allegedly violating ground rules and threatened to take action against them.While the KNA wants a 'Kukiland' to be formed by integrating Kuki-settled areas of Manipur and Myanmar, KNF-P and KLA wants a 'Kukiland' by carving out Kuki-inhabited areas of Manipur.

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