At least 14 civilians were mistakenly killed by Indian forces
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At least 14 tribal civilians and one security personnel were mistakenly killed when Indian forces opened indiscriminate fire in the remote northeastern state of Nagaland, government and military officials said on Sunday.
Axar.az reports that Indian Home Minister Amit Shah said he was "anguished" at the news of civilians being killed in the incident late on Saturday night.
Nagaland's chief minister Neiphiu Rio told Reuters a probe will be conducted and the guilty punished in the incident, which he ascribed to intelligence failure.
At least a dozen civilians and some members of the security forces were injured in the attack, said a federal defense ministry official based in New Delhi.
Locals in Nagaland have frequently accused forces of wrongly targeting innocent locals in their counterinsurgency operations against rebel groups.
The incident took place in and around Oting village in Mon district, bordering Myanmar, during a counterinsurgency operation conducted by members of the Assam Rifles, a part of Indian security forces deployed in the state, said a senior police official based in Nagaland.