Homes, school in Kayin State’s Lay Kay Kaw reduced to ashes by military airstrikes

By DMG 11 Apr 2022

DMG Newsroom
11 April 2022,Myawaddy, Kayin State 

More than 30 homes and at least one school were damaged by Myanmar military airstrikes in Lay Kay Kaw new town, Myawaddy Township, early on Monday morning, according to local sources. 

The military carried out at least four airstrikes, destroying several homes built with the assistance of the Nippon Foundation in Lay Kay Kaw, Kayin State, according to a Karen humanitarian aid worker. 

“About 35 homes and school [buildings] built by the Nippon Foundation in Lay Kay Kaw town were reduced to ashes in the airstrikes conducted by the Myanmar military early this morning. These homes have been uninhabited for a long time,” the aid worker added. 

A 40-strong Myanmar military contingent clashed with coalition forces led by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) after junta troops entered Lay Kay Kaw town and fired artillery shells indiscriminately on April 10, according to sources on the ground. 

“The clash broke out between the KNLA and Myanmar military after Myanmar military troops entered Lay Kay Kaw and fired artillery shells early this morning,” said a member of the KNLA. 

Thousands of locals have been displaced by heavy fighting between Myanmar military and allied Border Guard Force (BGF) troops, and the KNLA-led coalition in Lay Kay Kaw and nearby areas beginning in December, according to local aid groups.