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Myanmar army troops set fire to Catholic church in Karenni State

June 17, 2022/in News

A column from LID 66 torched and mined the religious site after suffering casualties in clashes with area resistance forces, a KNDF spokesperson says The military torched a Catholic church in Demoso Township, Karenni (Kayah) State, on Wednesday and laid landmines in the surrounding area before leaving, the spokesperson for a local resistance force said. […]

Two youths killed as bomb blasts hit Yangon

June 17, 2022/in News

Explosions were reported in at least five townships in the city on Thursday, days after a similar series of blasts in Mandalay Two youths were killed in Yangon’s Dagon and South Dagon townships on Thursday, allegedly while they were carrying out out bomb attacks on regime targets. The first incident occurred on Ayeyar Wun Road […]

Myanmar army troops set fire to Catholic church in Karenni State

June 17, 2022/in News

Two youths killed as bomb blasts hit Yangon

June 17, 2022/in News

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Myanmar army troops set fire to Catholic church in Karenni State

June 17, 2022/in News

A column from LID 66 torched and mined the religious site after suffering casualties in clashes with area resistance forces, a KNDF spokesperson says

The military torched a Catholic church in Demoso Township, Karenni (Kayah) State, on Wednesday and laid landmines in the surrounding area before leaving, the spokesperson for a local resistance force said.

Junta forces occupied the church compound in Daw Ngay Khu in the morning, and within hours had set fire to the main worship building, the community hall and the priest’s home, according to the information officer for the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF).

“There was a clash. They came into the village and began to set up a base in the church compound. They torched the church when they left,” he told Myanmar Now.

Since June 10, intense battles have been taking place between the military and allied Karenni resistance forces around Daw Ngay Khu, which is located along the highway connecting Demoso to the state capital of Loikaw, some 10 miles north.

The KNDF estimated that at least 10 junta soldiers were killed in the recent episodes of fighting near the village.

The junta column that suffered the casualties was the same unit that destroyed the church on Wednesday, the KNDF information officer said, noting that the troops belonged to Light Infantry Division (LID) 66 and departed for the town of Hpruso after mining the area.

“They set up landmines in the grass fields outside the church compound. We can’t tell how many there are but there are definitely more than 10 and we can’t defuse them,” he explained,

One day before the assault on the church, the troops in question also torched four homes in Daw Ngay Khu.

The military council has repeatedly denied responsibility for arson attacks on homes and religious buildings nationwide.
Dawngaykhu_church-2.Jpeg

A member of the KNDF is seen walking past a burning building within the church compound in Daw Nyay Khu after a junta attack (KNDF)

The KNDF spokesperson described the destruction in Daw Ngay Khu as part of a larger pattern of attacks that escalated in the region in early June. Military columns from Loikaw and Hpruso have targeted at least five villages in Demoso in what he speculated was an attempt to drive out resistance forces along the north-south highway that runs through Karenni State.

“The main reason is that they want to seize control of the Demoso-Hpruso-Bawlakhe-Hpasawng road so that they can send supplies and soldiers [through the area] more easily,” the information officer said.

Since June 9, at least 22 junta soldiers have been killed in battles with guerrilla forces in Loikaw, Demoso and Hpruso townships, according to the KNDF.

Myanmar Now was unable to independently verify the number of casualties.

In May of last year, four people were killed and eight seriously injured when the military fired heavy artillery at a Catholic church near Loikaw where displaced locals were taking shelter.

Karenni religious leaders reported soon after that eight churches had been damaged or destroyed by junta bombs in Karenni and southern Shan states, challenging the military’s claims that their troops had not intentionally targeted the sites.

“There’s no way they shot these churches by mistake. For one thing, they’re on big compounds that are very easy to identify by their buildings. And we’ve set up white flags at every church,” a priest told Myanmar Now at the time.

Across the country in Thantlang, Chin State, the Baptist church—the town’s oldest building—was reportedly burned down by junta forces on June 9, one of more than 60 religious sites destroyed in the state since the February 2021 coup, according to the Chin Human Rights Organisation.

Myanmar Now News

Two youths killed as bomb blasts hit Yangon

June 17, 2022/in News

Explosions were reported in at least five townships in the city on Thursday, days after a similar series of blasts in Mandalay

Two youths were killed in Yangon’s Dagon and South Dagon townships on Thursday, allegedly while they were carrying out out bomb attacks on regime targets.

The first incident occurred on Ayeyar Wun Road in South Dagon at around 7am, according to residents of the area.

“I heard the sound of motorcycles, then around 10 gunshots, while I was praying in the morning,” said one woman who lives in the nearby Innwa Housing complex.

“I later heard that a young man was shot and killed,” she added, speaking on condition of anonymity.

According to the woman, the victim was shot while being pursued by police who suspected him of planting a bomb. She added that blasts had been heard coming from the direction of Joe Phyu Street, which is also in the same area.

About three hours later, another explosion was reported on Bo Yar Nyunt Street in Dagon, this time killing a young man believed to have been responsible for the blast.

“Only one person was killed in the explosion on Bo Yar Nyunt Street. I was told the victim was the bomber himself,” a police source told Myanmar Now.

A photo of the victim’s badly injured body has circulated widely on social media.

Residents of Yangon’s Insein, Dala, and North Okkalapa townships also reported explosions on Thursday, but details were not available at the time of reporting.

The blasts occurred amid rumours that two of Myanmar’s most prominent political prisoners, veteran activist Ko Jimmy and former MP Phyo Zayar Thaw, were due to be executed along with two other condemned prisoners on Thursday morning.

A member of a Yangon-based urban guerrilla force confirmed that the two men killed on Thursday were members of their group, but declined to provide further details.

Earlier in the week, three explosions hit junta targets in Myanmar’s second-largest city, Mandalay.

The first blast hit a ward administration office in Maha Aungmyay Township at around 2pm on Tuesday, residents of the area told Myanmar Now. No casualties were reported.

Later the same day, at around 5pm, another explosion was reported in the same township targeting a junta-appointed ward administrator named Nyunt Win. Local sources said that he escaped unscathed, but others in his home were injured.

The third blast, which also occurred in Maha Aungmyay Township at around the same time as the second, targeted a military truck carrying wounded soldiers.

“I heard that two of them were injured, but I personally think the actual count could be higher,” said one witness, adding that the explosion did extensive damage to the vehicle.

A Mandalay-based guerrilla group called Generation Z Power claimed responsibility for the attack.

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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