Nagaland Firing Incident: 13 civilians killed, one soldier dies in rioting

More than a dozen civilians have been killed by Indian security forces in the northern state, Nagaland. This incident has triggered widespread violence and protest in the state.

Protesters burn vehicles, vandalized public property, and tried to attack an army camp.

Indian security forces open fire on civilians in a village in Nagaland: Oting and Tiru villages

Both villages border Myanmar. The firing was intended to be a counter-insurgency operation based on a tip. But they mistakenly open fire on a vehicle containing miners returning home. The firing killed six civilians, and another seven civilians and an Indian soldier died when locals confronted the troops. Several more people are in critical condition and are receiving treatment in a local hospital. There were more than 30 passengers in the vehicle. Most of them were daily wage workers returning from a coal mine. 

Reacting to this incident, home minister Amit Shah said he was “anguished” and vowed to investigate the incident.

Indian security forces have been battling separatist movements in the area for years. 

Last month, an army colonel, his wife, their son, 8, and four soldiers were killed by armed militants after ambushing their convoy in the neighboring Manipur state. But it’s not the first time the Indian army wrongfully killed civilians.

“The troopers had intelligence inputs about some militant movement in the area, and on seeing the truck, they mistook the miners to be rebels and opened fire, killing six laborers,” a senior police official told Reuters, requesting anonymity.

“After the firing, news spread in the village, hundreds of tribal people surrounded the camp. They burnt Assam Rifles vehicles and clashed with the troopers using crude weapons,” he said.

After the firing, many tribal people surrounded the camps in retaliation, and then another seven civilians died when Indian soldiers fired at them, along with an Indian soldier.

Nagaland State chief minister Neiphiu Rio condemned the killings in a tweet and promised, “High-level SIT will investigate & deliver justice as per the law of the land.” He also appealed for peace in the region as the situation remains critical.

Nagaland is one of India’s eight northern remote states. Government forces are battling dozens of ethnic armed groups in these states whose demands range from independent homelands to maximum autonomy within India.