JAKARTA - The Myanmar military regime has targeted villages and residential areas as targets for arson and bombing, as punishment for the armed resistance of the anti-coup civilians.
After fighting with armed ethnic groups and the People's Defense Forces (PDF), junta forces have opened fire on villages and burned down houses.
Last week, soldiers opened fire on Seng Hpra village in Hpakant Kachin Township, wounding six residents, following fighting nearby with ethnic armed Kachin Independence Army (KIA).
Three days later, junta officials summoned administrators from Seng Hpra and several other nearby villages to give them a message, a local resident from Hpakant told Myanmar Now.
If residents do not notify the military when KIA enters their village, their houses will be burned, officials told administrators summoned to appear.
"The military regime blamed us for not informing them of the arrival of the KIA. They threatened to burn our village down if another fighting broke out. I'm pretty sure they are fully capable of doing it. They have done it many times in the past," said one resident, citing Myanmar. Now Tuesday 20 July.
Last month Myanmar military forces burned down the village of Kinma in the Magway Region after meeting local resistance fighters there. Meanwhile, on Monday, the army opened fire on two other villages in Hpakant, although there were no clashes with KIA in the area at the time.
In Sagaing County on Sunday, junta soldiers clashed with PDF fighters in the villages of Tettu and Palaing in Shwebo Township. The locals, armed only with simple hunting rifles, were forced to retreat. After they did so, the army set fire to houses in Palaing and the nearby village of Kan Thar.
"The house that caught fire also had two tractors, a rice mill, and a warehouse which also caught fire. The family lost millions of kyats. The Myanmar military deliberately chose that house," said a resident of Tettume village, referring to the arson attack in Palaing
Soldiers also opened fire on the village of Kan Thar, and a monk from Palaing reportedly died of a heart attack during the shooting.
The night before Sunday's clashes, soldiers stormed the nearby village of Seikkhun and shot and killed four civilians on night duty.
SEE ALSO:
In Karen State last week, the 1st and 5th Brigades of the Karen National Union (KNU) clashed with junta forces in Hpapun and killed ten soldiers. In retaliation, the junta burned five houses in the nearby village of Kuseik, according to a statement from the 5th Brigade.
The Myanmar military regime also opened fire on the village of Baikkar, which is in the area under the control of Brigade 1, wounding five local residents. The shooting was the military's response to an attack by an unidentified armed group, Brigade 1 said in a statement.
Myanmar Coup. The VOI editorial team continues to monitor the political situation in one of the ASEAN member countries. Casualties from civilians continue to fall. Readers can follow the news covering the Myanmar military coup by clicking this link.
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