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At least one civilian killed as clashes in northern Rakhine continue

August 29, 2022/in News

Heavy artillery fire and airstrikes were reported in northern Maungdaw Township following an attack on a junta base last Friday A woman was killed on Saturday as fighting between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army (AA) continued through the weekend in northern Rakhine State’s Maungdaw Township. May Thar Sein, 60, died after an artillery shell […]

Over 28,000 Homes Torched by Myanmar Junta Forces Since Coup

August 29, 2022/in News

By THE IRRAWADDY 29 August 2022 Myanmar junta forces have burned down 28,434 houses in 645 locations since last year’s coup, with Sagaing Region suffering the heaviest damage, according to the independent research group Data For Myanmar. Military regime troops have committed arson attacks in 11 states and regions, with Sagaing and Magwe regions and Chin State […]

At least one civilian killed as clashes in northern Rakhine continue

August 29, 2022/in News

Over 28,000 Homes Torched by Myanmar Junta Forces Since Coup

August 29, 2022/in News

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At least one civilian killed as clashes in northern Rakhine continue

August 29, 2022/in News

Heavy artillery fire and airstrikes were reported in northern Maungdaw Township following an attack on a junta base last Friday

A woman was killed on Saturday as fighting between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army (AA) continued through the weekend in northern Rakhine State’s Maungdaw Township.

May Thar Sein, 60, died after an artillery shell fired by regime forces landed in the village of Min Gyi early Saturday morning, local sources reported.

The shell, which was reportedly fired by junta forces stationed in the nearby village of Kyein Chaung, killed May Thar Sein instantly, according to a man who lives in the area.

“She was getting some firewood from a pile near her house when the shell fell near her. She was killed on the spot,” said the man, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Maungdaw_1.Jpg

A junta soldier in Maungdaw in 2018 (EPA)

Later the same day, there were also reports that the military had carried out an airstrike near the village of Hka Maung Seik, more than 30km to the north.

According to a resident of the village, two helicopters were used to carry out attacks in the area, where AA forces had mounted an assault on a tactical base the day before.

“The airstrike was between Nang Yar Kaing and Lay Myo Kayti, but closer to Kayti. We don’t know if anyone was killed or injured,” said the local, referring to two nearby villages.

Myanmar Now has been unable to find out more information about the aerial assault, which reportedly lasted about 30 minutes.

According to teachers at a school in Hka Maung Seik, the two sides clashed for about an hour from around 3pm on Friday, and again from around 2am to 7am on Saturday.

After a shell landed on the school’s staff residence, those staying there decided to flee, said a teacher who did not want to be identified.

“We left the school on our on motorcycles at around 6am, and it was around 9am when we arrived at the Kyein Chaung security checkpoint, where they would not let us pass,” said the teacher.

“We tried to tell them that we were teachers from Hka Maung Seik, but not only would they not let us pass, but they also threatened to shoot us,” he added.
Mingyi_village-Rakhine-2021_1.Jpg

The entrance to Min Gyi, where a woman was killed by a Myanmar army shell on August 27 (Myanmar Now)

However, soon after they started heading back towards Hka Maung Seik, the group of around 10 teachers heard the sound of heavy artillery as they approached the village of Yan Aung Pyin, which is located about 1km from Min Gyi.

“We decided to go into Yan Aung Pyin to avoid the shelling,” said the teacher, adding that he had also heard reports of casualties in Min Gyi.

The Min Gyi resident who spoke to Myanmar Now about May Thar Sein’s death said that a social welfare group that had come to collect her body was also turned away at the Kyein Chaung checkpoint.

“The township administrator said he’d send a car to retrieve the body, but it never arrived because it couldn’t get past the Kyein Chaung checkpoint,” he said.

The fighting that followed the attack on the Hka Maung Seik base reportedly began after junta reinforcements arrived in the nearby village of Min Kha Maung on Friday evening.

Before leaving later the same night, the column of around 50 soldiers took around a dozen villagers, including a former village administrator, hostage, according to a resident.

“They were taken to be used as human shields, but three of them managed to escape,” said the local, adding that the whereabouts of the remaining hostages was not known.

Neither the Myanmar military nor the AA have released a statement about the latest hostilities between the two sides, which have also affected parts of southern Chin State.

Myanmar Now News

Over 28,000 Homes Torched by Myanmar Junta Forces Since Coup

August 29, 2022/in News

By THE IRRAWADDY 29 August 2022

Myanmar junta forces have burned down 28,434 houses in 645 locations since last year’s coup, with Sagaing Region suffering the heaviest damage, according to the independent research group Data For Myanmar.

Military regime troops have committed arson attacks in 11 states and regions, with Sagaing and Magwe regions and Chin State bearing the brunt of the junta’s campaign against civilians.

From February 1, 2021 to August 25, 2022, some 20,153 houses in Sagaing Region were torched by junta forces. Magwe Region saw 5,418 properties burned down, while 1,474 houses in Chin State were destroyed. Another 1,400-odd homes were torched elsewhere in the country.

Despite the United Nation’s (UN) Special Envoy Noeleen Heyzer calling on coup leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on August 17 to cease air and artillery strikes on civilian targets and the torching of homes, regime soldiers have conducted arson attacks and airstrikes on more than 20 villages in Sagaing and Magwe in the last nine days.

Over a dozen civilians have been killed, while an estimated 50,000 people have been forced to flee their homes, according to local residents and People’s Defense Forces.

Data For Myanmar said that regime forces escalated their arson attacks in Sagaing in April, May and June of this year, torching over 12,000 houses. 27 out of 34 townships in Sagaing reported junta arson attacks.

Magwe Region also saw an escalation in regime arson attacks in August losing 1,300 houses, added Data For Myanmar.

The research group said that it used reports from the media, rights groups and refugee organizations to calculate the number of homes destroyed. However, the actual number of houses burned down may be higher than the reported figures, as many regime arson attacks have yet to be verified.

Junta forces have increased their arson attacks and airstrikes against civilian targets since September last year, when the civilian National Unity Government declared war against the regime.

In mid-August, the UN Special Envoy also called on the junta leader to end all forms of violence, to show full respect for human rights and the rule of law, and to allow full and safe humanitarian access to those in need.

But the Myanmar military has continued to commit atrocities including burning people alive, the arbitrary torture and killings of civilians, extrajudicial killings of resistance detainees, using civilian detainees as human shields, artillery and airstrikes on residential areas, looting and burning houses and acts of sexual violence.

Some 2,249 people have been killed by the regime up to August 26, while 15,239 people including elected government leaders have been arrested or detained, said the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, a group that monitors arrests and deaths by junta forces.

Topics: Chin State, Coup, Data for Myanmar, junta, Magwe, military regime, Myanmar Military, Sagaing, UN, United Nations

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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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