Source: Hueiyen News Service
Imphal, March 22 2010:
At least four hardcore cadres including a leader of United Tribal Liberation Army (UTLA) were killed in an encounter with the troops of 57 Mtn Divn on the intervening night of March 21 and 22 at Longkaiphul village located between Leikot and Longpi villages in Nungba sub-division in Tamenglong district.
The PIB (Defence Wing), Imphal revealed in a press release that the troops of 57 Mtn Divn operating in Imphal East and Tamenglong districts launched an operation on the night of March 21-22 against UTLA.
In that operation 5 Assam Rifles killed the four hardcore UTLA cadres and recovered one AK 47 and two SLRs.
Among the four cadres killed was James Singson, a leader of the UTLA.
The press release further revealed that this group had raided and looted a huge cache of arms and ammunition from the Chekarcham Police Outpost in Cachar district of Assam on November 13 last year.
The Red Shield Division has been relentlessly pursuing this outfit and has apprehended a number of UTLA cadres and also recovered large number of arms and ammunition from them in earlier operations, the press release added.