Kyauktaw Twsp villager loses leg in landmine blast

By DMG 08 Sep 2022

DMG Newsroom
8 September 2022, Kyauktaw

A civilian lost a leg in a landmine blast in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township on Thursday evening, according to locals.

U Ba Shwe, 41, from Kun Ohn Taung village stepped on a landmine as he was returning to his village from an abandoned cowshed about one mile from the village.

“He went to demolish the cowshed. He used the same path when he went to and returned from the cowshed. The mine blew up as he returned from the cowshed. Luckily, he took his phone with him. So, he called his neighbours, and we went to the scene,” villager Ko Shwe Thee told DMG.

U Ba Shwe lost his right leg from the knee down, and is receiving treatment at Yoe Tayoke Cottage Hospital, said Ko Zaw Lin Htun, a brother-in-law of U Ba Shwe.

“The doctor told us that his condition is stable except that his leg had to be amputated. He is extremely sad that he will not be able to support his family,” Ko Zaw Lin Htun told DMG.

The Myanmar military and the AA clashed fiercely near Buddhaw village during fighting between the two sides from late 2018 to November 2020, and junta troops remain deployed on a hill near the village, according to residents.

According to a list compiled by DMG, at least six people had been killed and 21 others were injured in landmine explosions from the beginning of this year through August 11.