Monk killed, four other people injured by junta shelling in Kayin State’s Kawkareik

By DMG 27 Dec 2022

DMG Newsroom
27 December 2022, Kawkareik, Kayin State 

A Buddhist monk was killed and four people, including two other monks and a novice, were injured by artillery strikes in Kayin (Karen) State’s Kawkareik Township on December 26, according to local residents. 

The monk was pronounced dead at the scene while the four others suffered shrapnel wounds when artillery shells fired by the military’s Kawkareik-based Light Infantry Battalion No. 97 landed and exploded in the compound of Shwe Kyet Yet Monastery at about 11 a.m.  

“An artillery shell hit a mess hall in the monastery, killing a Buddhist monk on the spot and injuring four others. The injured have been admitted to the hospital,” said a disciple. 

The injured were taken to Hpa-an Hospital and are receiving emergency treatment, according to a social organisation in Kawkareik. 

“A Buddhist monk succumbed to shrapnel wounds and the boy has been given oxygen,” said a member of the social organisation, referring to a 10-year-old who was the fourth person to sustain injuries in Monday’s shelling. 

In addition to the monastery, at least 10 homes in downtown Kawkareik were damaged or destroyed by junta artillery fire and airstrikes, according to locals. 

“The military attacked with artillery strikes and gunships, [hitting] a monastery and residential areas,” said a resident of Kawkareik. 

Regime spokesman Major-General Zaw Min Tun could not be reached for comment. 

On Tuesday, junta helicopters and fighter jets attacked villages near Kawkareik from around 7:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m., according to locals. 

Meanwhile, thousands of vehicles remain trapped by fighting along a section of the Asian Highway linking Myawaddy and Kawkareik townships in Kayin State. 

Junta troops and resistance forces led by Brigade 6 of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) have been clashing since December 17 near the village of Kawnwe in Kawkareik Township, with a handful of bridges damaged in the fighting. Some vehicles on the road have been stranded for more than a week.