One killed, three injured as regime forces shell Sittwe Twsp village

By Admin 04 Dec 2023

DMG Newsroom
4 December 2023, Sittwe

A local man was killed and three others were injured after junta artillery shells landed and exploded in Chilaepin Village, part of Arakan State’s Sittwe Township, on December 4.

The deceased has been identified as U Nyi Nyi, in his 50s, and the injured are U Aung Kyaw Than, 40, a novice, and a woman from Chilaepin Village.

“A military regiment based in Pardalaik Village fired multiple mortar shells into the village without there being fighting. Two mortar shells fell and exploded in the village,” a villager told DMG.

The injured are being treated by traditional medicine practitioners in nearby villages.

“All residents have fled to safer locations as junta soldiers are coming to the village. We are also fleeing now. The military deliberately fired mortar shells into the village without there being fighting in the area,” said another villager.

DMG attempted to contact junta spokesman Maj-Gen Zaw Min Tun for comment on civilian casualties due to the junta shelling, but he could not be reached.

Military tensions between the regime and Arakan Army are running high in Sittwe Township, where no recent instances of AA-military hostilities have been reported to date. The regime has tightened security in downtown Sittwe, however, and fires heavy weapons into the villages on a daily basis.

“The military’s activities in Sittwe Township are related to the Pauktaw fighting. The authorities are very worried that the AA will attack Sittwe. This is the reason why junta soldiers in downtown Sittwe fire mortar shells into some villages. We view these acts as the military’s deliberate violence against innocent people,” said a social activist in Sittwe.

Six local residents including children in Tawkan Village, Sittwe Township, were injured in a drone attack launched by the military at around 5 p.m. on November 27.

So far at least 23 people were killed and 84 others have been 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 was ongoing at press time.]