Indian police find bodies of six hostages month after abduction

Manipur state has seen periodic clashes between the predominantly Hindu Meitei majority and the mainly Christian Kuki minority for nearly three years, but the violence has spread in recent months, also drawing in the Naga group.

The conflict has killed more than 250 people since it erupted in 2023.

The Manipur police said in a statement that its forces had recovered the bodies of six people "after nearly 24 hours of search operations... aided by sniffer dogs and forensic teams".

The dead are believed to be Naga civilians abducted on May 13, police said.

Fighters from the Naga community have joined the ethnic violence this year, clashing with the Kukis.

The killing of three Kuki pastors in May, blamed on armed Naga groups, triggered a series of abductions of civilians.

A group of 14 Kukis were released on Tuesday by Naga groups, who then called on Kuki fighters to reciprocate the gesture, leading to the stepped-up police search.

The Nagas and the Kukis, both predominantly Christian communities, have competing claims of their respective ethnic homelands in the hills of Manipur, leading to frequent conflicts.

In 1993, clashes between the two groups erupted into widespread ethnic violence that killed hundreds and displaced entire villages.