Police officer shot dead near bridge linking Mon and Kayin states

By DMG 19 Mar 2022

DMG Newsroom
19 March 2022, Kyaikmaraw, Mon State

A police officer was killed and two others were injured in a shooting that took place at a security checkpoint near Chaung Hnitkhwa Bridge in Kyaikmaraw Township, Mon State, on Saturday morning, according to locals.

An unidentified armed group opened fire on the officers at the security checkpoint near Chaung Hnitkhwa Bridge, which links Kyaikmaraw Township in Mon State and Kyainseikgyi Township, Kayin State.

The bridge remained closed to traffic as of Saturday evening, a Kyaikmaraw resident told DMG on condition of anonymity.

“An unidentified gunman opened fire on a bridge checkpoint earlier this morning, killing one policeman and wounding two others. The bridge is still closed. People from Kyainseikgyi could not come and people from Kyaikmaraw were stranded. We have to wait for the bridge to reopen,” the unnamed Kyaikmaraw resident added.

“It is not known which group attacked the bridge’s security checkpoint. The KNU Brigade 6 and local defence groups have been active in the area for a long time,” said a local in Kyainseikgyi.

Earlier this week, heavy fighting broke out between the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) — the armed wing of the Karen National Union (KNU) — and junta troops in front of the military’s Light Infantry Battalion No. 32 base in Kyainseikgyi Township, disrupting traffic on the Phayarthonesu-Kyainseikgyi road.