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Myanmar army shelling kills four IDPs in Moebye

September 19, 2022/in News

The victims, who included two children, were among hundreds sheltering at a local monastery in the southern Shan State town Shelling by junta forces killed four internally displaced persons (IDPs) in southern Shan State’s Pekhon Township on Friday, according to local sources. The victims, who were among some 300 people sheltering at a monastery in […]

School-hour airstrikes leave six children dead in Depayin

September 19, 2022/in News

Teachers and students were also reportedly held hostage in one of the villages targeted in the assault on Friday At least six children were killed when Myanmar’s military launched air and ground assaults on several villages in Sagaing Region’s Depayin Township during school hours on Friday, according to local sources. Residents of the area said […]

Myanmar army shelling kills four IDPs in Moebye

September 19, 2022/in News

School-hour airstrikes leave six children dead in Depayin

September 19, 2022/in News

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Myanmar army shelling kills four IDPs in Moebye

September 19, 2022/in News

The victims, who included two children, were among hundreds sheltering at a local monastery in the southern Shan State town

Shelling by junta forces killed four internally displaced persons (IDPs) in southern Shan State’s Pekhon Township on Friday, according to local sources.

The victims, who were among some 300 people sheltering at a monastery in the town of Moebye, included two sisters aged 7 and 10 and two men in their 50s.

A statement released by a local social welfare group said that the incident occurred at around 6am on Friday, when an artillery shell landed on the Mwe Daw Monastery in Moebye’s Myoma Ward. All four of the deceased died instantly, the group said.

According to a resident of the town, at least 13 others were seriously injured.

“They were staying there because they thought it would be safe, as there hadn’t been any clashes in that area. But the military has been firing shells at random. I could hear guns going off all last night, but it has calmed down again now,” said the local, who did not want to be identified.

Moebye residents say that junta troops have been shelling relentlessly since being forced to retreat from the town on September 11 following four days of fighting that resulted in heavy regime casualties.

According to one source, junta forces appear to be trying to inflict as much damage as possible after at least 60 soldiers were killed by a coalition of anti-regime groups while stationed inside a church in Moebye’s Pwel Kone Ward.

“The shells they’re using now are not the usual kind. These ones detonate two or three times, so it’s very concerning,” said the source.

Moebye, which is located near the border with Karenni (Kayah) State, has a population of around 30,000, according to the 2014 census. However, relief groups estimate that around a third of its inhabitants have been displaced by recent fighting.

There are growing fears that the town could see a massive influx of junta soldiers like Demoso, some 25km to the south in Karenni State, where hundreds of reinforcements were sent last month to consolidate regime control.

“We don’t know yet if it will become like Demoso. It all depends on what the military decides to do next,” said one local.
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A building in Moebye destroyed by Myanmar army shelling (Myanmar Now)

A spokesperson for the Kayan Rescue Committee (KRC) said that while some residents have returned to their homes, many were unable to do so due to the ongoing clashes and the destruction of at least 100 houses by the junta forces’ heavy weapon attacks.

“Many locals just decide to stay out in the fields rather than return to their villages. Even people living in the wards that haven’t seen any fighting don’t feel safe anymore,” said the KRC spokesperson.

He added that high fuel and commodity prices have also added to the hardships of IDPs.

“Many of the organizations that had been providing food and other supplies have stopped operating. Moebye used to be a bustling commercial area, but everything’s so difficult now due to the war,” he said.

More than 200,000 ethnic Karenni civilians have been displaced by clashes in Karenni State and parts of southern Shan State since fighting began in the region last year, according to the Karenni Civil Society Network.

Myanmar Now News

School-hour airstrikes leave six children dead in Depayin

September 19, 2022/in News

Teachers and students were also reportedly held hostage in one of the villages targeted in the assault on Friday

At least six children were killed when Myanmar’s military launched air and ground assaults on several villages in Sagaing Region’s Depayin Township during school hours on Friday, according to local sources.

Residents of the area said that the attacks, which targeted the villages of Letyetkone, Thitton, and Nyaung Hla, also resulted in many other casualties. However, details were not available as most of the affected villagers were still in hiding, they said.

Most of the confirmed casualties were children studying at a school in Letyetkone, where junta troops also reportedly held teachers and students hostage before sending them to Ye-U Township, according to a statement released by Myanmar’s shadow National Unity Government (NUG) on Sunday.

Meanwhile, the anti-regime Depayin Township People’s Administration Team said that around 50,000 people living in villages along the western bank of the Muu River were forced to flee after the military used two fighter jets and two helicopters to carry out a series of surprise attacks on Friday.

In a statement, the group added that helicopters were also used to transport junta troops into the area to launch ground attacks.

A resident of the area said that the military aircraft appeared without warning and fired indiscriminately on the villages below.

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Blood stains the floor of the village school in Letyetkone after an attack by Myanmar’s military on September 16 (Supplied)

“They just suddenly came out of nowhere and started shooting. The two helicopters hovered overhead and fired down on us. When the jets passed over us, there was nothing we could do but lie flat on the ground,” he said.

Another resident said the attacks were unexpected because there hadn’t been any recent clashes in the area.

“There hasn’t been any serious fighting around here lately, or any other significant incident. I think they’re trying to clear the way to bring troops in on the ground,” he said.

The military has carried out at least 10 aerial assaults in the area since late last year, when it began to rely heavily on air power to terrorise civilians amid fierce resistance from local defence forces.

“The revolutionary forces are very strong in this township and have a lot of control over the area. That’s why it’s not easy for military columns to travel here,” said the spokesperson for a local resistance group called Depayin Township Brothers.

According to the spokesperson, the timing of the latest attack made it inevitable that children would be killed.

“Many schools are operating in Depayin Township, and they decided to do this during school hours, so of course several children were hit,” he said.

In many other parts of the country under the control of the regime that seized power last year, schools remain closed due to boycotts by parents opposed to the return of military rule.

In its statement, the NUG said that it strongly condemned the “targeted attacks on the schools [as] an inhuman and brutal war crime” and a gross violation of children’s right to education.

Myanmar Now News

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ND Burma

ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.

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