Nine civilians injured across four Kyauktaw Township villages

By Myo Thiri Kyaw 16 Mar 2020

Myo Thiri Kyaw | DMG
March 16, Kyauktaw

Nine civilians from four villages in Kyauktaw Township were injured amid hostilities on the morning of March 16, said U Oo Tun Win, the Pyithu Hluttaw lawmaker representing the Arakan State township.

Two people from Yaung Sone (North) village; two from Oat Kyaup village; three from Inbari (Muslim) village; and two from Pauk Lay Wa village were injured as conflict between the military and the Arakan Army ethnic armed group continues to plague the region.

In Yaung Sone (North) village, 63-year-old U Aung Thar Tun sustained a gunshot wound on his left thigh, and U Maung Kyar Tun, 43, was hit by shrapnel in his calf. They were injured while sleeping at their homes, Yaung Sone (North) village administrator U Thar Tun Aung told DMG.

“Please, fire at each other but don’t fire at locals and villages,” U Thar Tun Aung implored the warring parties. “If clashes continue like this, our people will go extinct,”

Elsewhere in Kyauktaw Township, 63-year-old U Maung Phyu Hla from Oat Kyaup village sustained serious injuries to his abdomen and knee, while U Ni Hla Tun, 60, was hospitalized with a less severe wound to his back, said local U Than Zaw.

U Maung Phyu Hla was sent to Sittwe General Hospital and U Ni Hla Tun was sent to Ah Pauk Wa Hospital.

“Both sides can fire at each other but firing at hospitalized patients is unacceptable. It happened recently. As this act is inappropriate, we strongly object to it,” said U Oo Tun Win, the local MP, referring to another recent shooting in neighboring Mrauk-U Township in which a village medical facility was riddled with bullets, with some of its patients hit by the gunfire.

U Oo Tun Win and Kyauktaw locals alleged that Monday’s injuries were caused by fire from a Tatmadaw naval vessel stationed in the area. DMG phoned Colonel Win Zaw Oo, spokesperson for the military’s Western Command, and Brig-Gen Zaw Min Tun, secretary of the Tatmadaw True News Information Team, but they could not be reached for comment.

More than 130 civilians have been killed and over 360 injured due to fighting between the Tatmadaw and the AA in Arakan State, according to the Arakan Students Union (Universities - Yangon).