Papua New Guinea police have arrested five people in connection with the brutal attacks in Angoram district that left around 25 people dead last week.

RNZ Pacific correspondent in PNG, Scott Waide, said the ringleaders who initiated the attacks in three remote villages in East Sepik have not yet been arrested.

He said they were still armed and on the run after an estimated 30 young people targeted Tamara, Tambari and Agrumara villages over what is believed to have been a land dispute.

Hundreds of people have been displaced as a result of the deadly violence, with reports that survivors were hiding in bushes.

Waide said there had been no government presence or assistance sent to the survivors who desperately needed food and help.

East Sepik Governor Allan Bird has said tribal violence continued to deteriorate in the country.

A villager from Angoram, Andrew Sangi, told RNZ Pacific last week the government was not actively involved to solve the problem.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz