Landmine kills four in Taungup Twsp

By Win Nyunt 30 Jun 2020

Win Nyunt | DMG
30 June, Taungup 

Four people were killed on Monday in a landmine explosion near Tayaba village in conflict-plagued Arakan State’s Taungup Township. 

The blast occurred at around 11 p.m. on June 29 about six furlongs north of Tayaba village. The four men killed in the encounter were not local residents, according to Tayaba village administrator U Naung Naung Oo. 

“We went to the scene of the explosion when we heard the landmine blast. They were not local people. We don’t know who they are,” he told DMG. 

The victims were taken to Taungup Hospital by security personnel and policemen, according to residents. 

“They [the four men] died while trying to make a landmine. They were not Taungup residents. They appear to be from Kyaukphyu residents because they wielded swords. They wrongly detonated the explosive device from a location which is about 100 feet from the motor road,” said Police Major Than Naing, commander of Taungup Township police force. 

U Naung Naung Oo said local villagers are concerned for their safety in the wake of the landmine explosion. 

Landmines are a growing threat to life and limb in Arakan State, where they are reportedly used by both sides in the long-running conflict between the Tatmadaw and the Arakan Army. Taungup Township, however, has been spared the worst of the hostilities to date.