276 Myanmar soldiers who took refuge in Mizoram will be repatriated soon: Officials

IANS

Aizawl, January 19

The 276 Myanmar Army personnel--who took refuge in Mizoram's Lawngtlai district after their camps were captured by the Arakan Army (AA) militants--would be repatriated at the earliest, officials said on Thursday.

Officials in Aizawl said 276 Myanmar soldiers with their arms and ammunition reached Bandukbanga village situated on the Mizoram-Myanmar-Bangladesh border trijunction, in southernmost Lawngtlai district on Wednesday afternoon.

They are now being taken care of by the Assam Rifles at their Parva camp in Lawngtlai district.

Assam Rifles has been guarding Mizoram's 510-km-long unfenced mountainous border with Myanmar.

“Necessary formalities, including collection of biometric details of the Myanmar military personnel, are now being conducted. Necessary medical support was also given to the soldiers. After getting clearance from the appropriate higher authorities, the Army men would be evacuated to their country,” an official said.

With the latest influx of Myanmarese Army personnel in Mizoram, the number of soldiers who fled Myanmar since November 13 and reached India has touched 636.

Earlier, Indian Air Force helicopters airlifted the soldiers to Moreh in Manipur and handed them over to the Myanmar Army authority.

On January 2 and 9, a large number of Myanmarese soldiers were flown back home on a Myanmar military aircraft that came to Lengpui airport in Aizawl to take back the soldiers.

A major border trade centre, Moreh is just 4 km to the west of Myanmar's largest border town Tamu and 110 km south of state capital Imphal.

Fierce gun battles between the Myanmar Army, popularly known as Tatmadaw, and the armed fighters resumed in October last year in areas close to the Indian border leading to the fresh influx of soldiers and civilians into Indian territories.

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