Overview
- Police said Friday that 28 of about 38 abducted civilians were released, while several outlets reported 31 freed and around six people still unaccounted for.
- Following Wednesday's ambush that killed three church leaders in Kangpokpi and a separate killing in Noney, rival Kuki and Naga groups seized civilians in retaliatory detentions.
- Staggered handovers on Thursday night and Friday freed 12 Naga women at Makhan, 14 Kuki villagers including four men and ten women in Senapati, and two Salesian church workers at separate locations.
- Talks continued Saturday among civil groups, state officials and security agencies to locate the rest, as protests, road blockades and ultimatums from Naga and Kuki bodies kept tensions high in hill districts.
- Security officials named a faction of the Zeliangrong United Front as a suspect in the ambush, the group denied involvement, and the case unfolds against years of ethnic strife in Manipur since 2023.