Three ALP officials assassinated in Sittwe

04 Jan 2023

DMG Newsroom
4 January 2023, Sittwe

Three men who were shot dead by unknown gunmen in Sittwe’s Setyonsu Ward on Wednesday were members of the Arakan Liberation Party (ALP), according to party officials.

The slain ALP officials have been identified as Brigadier-General Saw Mya [Commander-in-Chief], Kyaw Soe and Thurein Htet. The three men were apparently assassinated at about 8 a.m. on January 4 while going to an event to mark Myanmar’s Independence Day organised by the military council in the Arakan State capital, said ALP officials and other reliable sources.

“Three ALP officials were shot dead by unidentified men armed with AK assault rifles. Among the three men was an ALP senior official. They had just returned to Sittwe from a meeting in Naypyidaw,” a reliable source told DMG.

Sittwe-based ALP officials confirmed that the deceased were ALP members, but said they could not provide details about them.

The three ALP members, in a civilian vehicle, were attacked near a school in Setyonsu Ward, where they were found dead of bullet wounds, said an eyewitness from a nearby area.

“I heard six gunshots in a row. After a while, people started to gather around the car and three dead bodies were found inside the car,” the eyewitness explained.

The vehicle that the deceased were riding in was also hit by bullets and some windows were damaged. Following the incident, junta soldiers and police arrived at the scene and conducted tight security checks on passersby and residents.

The bodies of the ALP members were taken to Sittwe General Hospital, said Ko Lin Lin, chairman of the Myitta Yaungchi Association, a local charity in Sittwe.

“I went to the scene because I thought that there was a traffic accident. Three ALP members were reportedly assassinated and their bodies were taken to Sittwe Hospital. I don't know the details of the incident,” he added.

When DMG asked family members of those who were shot dead by the unidentified gunmen, they said they did not want to say anything.

The ALP is a signatory to the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement, and an ALP delegation led by Daw Saw Mra Razar Linn has been involved in peace talks with Myanmar’s military regime.