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Ulfa-I claims 3 cadres dead in drone strikes on Myanmar camps; Army denies | Guwahati News - Times of India

12 Guwahati: The banned insurgent group, United Liberation Front of Asom-Independent (Ulfa-I), claimed that three of its cadres were killed in a targeted drone attack in at least three waves on its mobile camps in Myanmar's Sagaing region near the India-Myanmar border by the Indian Army early Sunday morning. The Ulfa-I said between 2am and 4am, over 150 drones of Indian Army, manufactured in Israel and France, struck several mobile camps of Ulfa-I, and Revolutionary People's Front (RPF), the political wing of the People's Liberation Army (PLA) of Manipur along the India-Myanmar international border region between Longwa (Nagaland) and Pangsau Pass (Arunachal Pradesh). The group claimed that attack resulted in the death of senior Ulfa-I leader Nayan Asom and injuries to 19 other members. In a subsequent statement, it claimed that two more senior leaders -- Ganesh Asom and Pradip Asom -- were killed in a second wave of attack during Nayan Asom's funeral rites. The Indian Army has officially denied involvement in the alleged drone stricks. Defence ministry PRO Lt Col Mahendra Rawat told TOI in Guwahati, "There are no inputs with the Indian Army on such operation." In another statement later, Ulfa-I dismissed the Indian Army's denial, saying people in Arunachal Pradesh's border area are witness to the three waves of drone attacks. Assam's chief minister and state police also denied any involvement or knowledge of operations, stating that further clarity is expected as more information surfaces. A security source confirmed that there were losses of life at the Ulfa-I camp in Myanmar, but it emphasised that, given the current crisis in Myanmar -- where the military junta is embroiled in a widespread civil war with numerous ethnic armed groups and insurgents -- the cause of the incident could be internal to Myanmar itself. "The ongoing civil war in Myanmar has led to frequent clashes, shifting alliances, and a general breakdown of state control in many areas, particularly near international borders. In this environment, attacks on insurgent camps -- including those used by Ulfa-I -- could plausibly originate from Myanmar's own ethnic armed organisations or even from the Myanmar military, rather than from Indian forces," the source said. Since the late 1980s and 1990s, Indian insurgent groups began establishing camps in Myanmar's border areas to escape Indian security operations. The porous border and ongoing conflict have made the region a hotspot for cross-border militant activity. Indian security agencies have expressed concern over the use of Myanmar's territory by insurgents for launching attacks in northeast India. There have been previous instances of Indian military action or alleged cross-border strikes, but official confirmation is rare and often denied by both Indian and Myanmar authorities. Ulfa's main camps are reportedly in the dense forests of Sagaing, with key bases at Waktham Basti, Hoyat Basti, and Hakiyot (opposite Longding district, Arunachal Pradesh). Some camps are said to be near the Pangmi Naga area and along the China-Myanmar border. Manipur-based groups, including PLA, KYKL, and PREPAK, also operate from these areas. The NSCN-K(YA) faction has set up its headquarters and camps in Naga-inhabited regions of Sagaing, often within a 6 to 10 km radius of other Indian groups camps. These camps have been used continuously, with their locations shifting in response to military pressure. The Sagaing region and Naga-inhabited areas of Myanmar remain the primary strongholds for these Indian insurgent groups, often with support or tolerance from local armed factions or, at times, the Myanmar military. The ongoing civil war in Myanmar has further complicated the security landscape, with insurgent groups sometimes shifting allegiances or moving camps to avoid detection or attacks. Prabin Kalita is a journalist at The Times of India and is currently the Chief of Bureau (northeast). He has been reporting in mainstream Indian national media since 2001. He has been a field journalist reporting gamut of issues from India's northeastern region and major developments in neighbouring countries like Myanmar, China, Bhutan and Bangladesh concerning India and northeastern region. He has been covering insurgency -- internal and cross-border, politics, natural calamities, environment etc. He is a post-graduate in Geological Sciences from Gauhati University.

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