New Delhi: The separatist group National Socialist Council of Nagaland-Isak Muivah has called the torture and killing of three Kuki villagers in the Naga-majority Ukhrul district in Manipur an “unwarranted intrusion,” Times of India has reported.The killing of the three Kuki people in Ukhrul is the first attack in the region of the state which has been roiled by ethnic violence since the beginning of May. Over 150 people have died, tens of thousands have been displaced and the state’s geography is now divided along ethnic lines.The three, identified as Thangkhokai Haokip, Jamkhogin Haokip and Hollenson Baite, were killed at around 4:30 am on August 18 at the village of Thowai Kuki. Police said they had been designated as village guards by the locals.The NSCN-IM has identified the attack as something that took place “within the jurisdiction of Nagalim.”The group said a day ago, on August 20, that “Nagas don’t want the sectarian violence spilling into their areas under any circumstance”.The NSCN-IM also said that the Meitei separatist group Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup (KYKL) and a Naga outfit are responsible for the killings. The latter, it said, “doesn’t represent the community’s interest and welfare”.The KYKL has said that it has no connection to the killings of the three Kukis.Blockade on NH2Meanwhile, the Hindu has reported that the Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) at Kangpokpi, will re-impose the blockade on the crucial Dimapur-Imphal National Highway 2 from today, August 21.This blockade is likely to affect the supply of essentials to Meitei dominated places.The COTU announced that the blockade is against the Union government’s alleged failure to protect the Kuki-Zo community and ensure availability of essentials in the hills, where the community is limited to.Manipur police posted on X (formerly Twitter) that the movement of 163 vehicles along NH-2 with essential items “have been ensured.”Movement of Essential Items along NHs: 1.Movement of 163 (one hundred sixty-three) vehicles along NH-2 with essential items have been ensured. Strict security measures are taken up in all vulnerable locations and security convoy is provided in sensitive stretches in order to…— Manipur Police (@manipur_police) August 20, 2023On August 19, Hindu reported, an Assam Rifles convoy from Imphal could not proceed to deliver medicines, which included vaccines for children, to Kuki-dominated Churachandpur. The medicines had to be transported by choppers.