Clashes Between Myanmar Junta-Rivals Force, Influx of Refugees Flee to India

Heavy fighting in war-torn Myanmar has forced nearly 4,000 people to flee into India in the last four days, Indian officials in the northeastern state of Mizoram said Monday.

The refugees, crossing thick forested routes to neighbouring India, ran from clashes between rival Chin armed groups, Mizoram state home secretary Vanlalmawia, who uses only one name, told AFP.

"Many of the people have relatives on the Indian side, so they are staying with them," he said. "Others are being housed in community halls."

The remote hill state is already hosting more than 30,000 refugees from Myanmar, where a deadly civil war has raged since the military seized power in 2021. A senior state police officer said "approximately 4,000 people have come in the last four days", speaking on condition of anonymity.

Police said the fighting between the groups - both of which oppose military rule - continues for control of the region known as Chinland. "The situation on the other side of the border remains tense, so we have not asked them to return," the police official said.

India, which has sought to deepen ties with Myanmar as a counterweight to China's growing influence, has shied away from explicitly condemning the military coup.