Zeliangrong United Front (ZUF) has strongly denied any involvement in the deadly ambush between Kotzim and Kotlen villages in Kangpokpi district that claimed the lives of three Kuki civilians, including church leaders.
In a statement issued by Louis Gangmei, the outfit condemned the attack as “barbaric” and “inhumane” and alleged that operatives of National Socialist Council of Nagalim-Isak-Muivah (NSCN-IM) carried out the ambush using the name “ZUF Kamson.”
ZUF clarified that there is no faction called “ZUF Kamson” and claimed the nomenclature was being deliberately used to malign the image of the organisation and the Zeliangrong community. The group accused NSCN-IM of attempting to create ethnic hostility and destabilise peace in Zeliangrong areas.
According to the statement, ZUF had recently initiated efforts to convene meetings with village authorities, church leaders, civil society organisations, women leaders, youth leaders, and intellectuals to promote peace and communal harmony in the region.
The outfit further alleged that NSCN-IM had issued directives discouraging people from attending the proposed meetings, which ZUF described as an attempt to obstruct peace initiatives and provoke hostility.