Junta shelling blamed for killing 4-year-old boy in Kyauktaw Twsp village

By Admin 02 Jan 2024

DMG Newsroom
2 January 2024, Kyauktaw

Mortar shells fired by regime forces fell and exploded in Myauktaung Village, part of Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township, at about 3 p.m. on Tuesday, killing a 4-year-old boy and injuring five other people.

The deceased has been identified as Maung Nyan Min Hein, while U Kyaw Than Hlaing, Daw Pyar Ma, Daw Hla Nu Yaing, Daw Oo Mya Sein and Ma Htay Htay sustained shrapnel wounds.

Junta troops and the Arakan Army (AA) are fighting fiercely for control of the Tinma tactical command base east of the Kaladan River in Kyauktaw Township. A junta jet fighter dropped bombs on the Taungshae mountain range, where the Tinma tactical command base is located, at about 8 a.m. on Tuesday.

Civilian casualties were reported after three mortar shells fired by the military’s Kyauktaw-based No. 9 Military Operations Command landed and exploded in Myauktaung Village on January 2.

“The victims sustained shrapnel wounds after a mortar shell fell while they were having conversation under the home. We feel sorry for the tragedy,” said a family member of the injured.

The injured are yet to be sent to Kyauktaw Hospital due to the military’s ongoing artillery strikes, another family member said.

“The injured hid themselves in a bomb shelter. We have not been able to send them to the hospital, so they are still bleeding,” the family member added.

The AA has been attacking the junta’s tactical command base on Mount Taung Shae, near the village of Tinma, since December 25.

Among dozens of people displaced by the junta shelling and airstrikes and currently hiding in the jungle, 38-year-old U Maung Nyunt died of a heart attack on December 29.

Civilian casualties continue to rise in Arakan State, inflicted primarily by regime airstrikes, artillery strikes and drone attacks since renewed fighting broke out on November 13.

So far at least 50 people have been killed and 172 others injured in Arakan State and neighbouring Chin State’s Paletwa Township during the latest hostilities, according to a DMG tally. [Editor’s Note: The death toll does not include residents of Pauktaw, where fierce fighting continues and reliable information remains difficult to ascertain.]