Christian leaders in India’s strife-torn Manipur state have expressed hope that peace will gradually be restored after authorities seized large caches of arms and ammunition from areas dominated by the Hindu majority Meitei ethnic group. The seizure of arms “gives us an assurance that the state administration under the direct control of the federal government is serious about restoring peace,” an indigenous Christian leader told, on condition of anonymity. Security forces seized 328 weapons and more than 9,000 assorted rounds of ammunition from Meitei-dominated districts in the Imphal Valley on June 13-14. The state has experienced a bitter armed ethnic conflict between the Meitei people and the Christian-dominated Kuku-Zo tribal group over the past two years. It has claimed at least 260 lives and displaced 60,000 people, mostly Christians. Christian leaders say the radical Meitei group Arambai Tenggol looted weapons and ammunition from government stores, including police stations, and used them to unleash violence against Christians. According to reports, more than 5,000 weapons such as machine guns, AK 47, and 406 Carbines were among the looted weaponry, besides some 60,000 rounds of ammunition. Critics also say the previous state government, run by the pro-Hindu Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), tacitly supported the Hindu violence since it began on May 3, 2023, after Meitei people attacked a Kuki protest march that opposed a move to grant tribal status to Meiteis. The state was brought under federal rule on Feb. 13 after the then-chief minister, N. Biren Singh, was forced to resign due to his failure to contain the violence and restore peace.
Spanish bishops speak out after leaks of their meeting with Leo XIV
The executive committee of the Spanish Bishops’ Conference, (CEE, by its Spanish acronym) meeting in Madrid this week, issued an official statement regarding the leaks
