Myanmar Hands Over 5 Hardcore Manipur Militants, Airlifted To Imphal

This comes within a month of the deadly ambush in Manipur that killed seven people, including a Colonel and four jawans of the Assam Rifles.

In a swift early morning operation, an Indian Air Force aircraft airlifted five hardcore militants of a rebel group that operates in Manipur from Mandalay in Myanmar to Imphal, intelligence sources said. Myanmar's Army had on Wednesday handed over five hardcore cadres of the banned Revolutionary People's Front (RPF) outfit and its armed wing, the PLA.

"A special flight brought the five Manipur-based RPF militants from Myanmar and landed at the Imphal airport on Wednesday morning before the handing over of the extremists to the Manipur police. The PLA cadre guerillas were immediately taken to an undisclosed location by the police and they are being interrogated by senior officials," said another senior official of Manipur police who wished to remain anonymous.

The five militants, who have given themselves military honorifics, have been identified as - Major Koireng, Major Angam, Major Banner, Captain Abi, and Captain Devan.

Intelligence sources added that these militants were caught a year back, before the Myanmar military coup. They were arrested during Operation Sunrise, which the Myanmarese army had carried out against Northeast Indian rebel groups who have bases in the Sagaing region. These five militants were picked up from Monywa.