Seven bound and blindfolded bodies wash up on Taungup shore

By Admin 25 Jul 2024

DMG Newsroom
25 July 2024, Taungup

Seven male corpses washed up on Kula Yaung shore west of Taungup Town in Arakan State on Wednesday.

They were in civilian clothes, their hands and legs were bound, and they were blindfolded, said residents.

“The bodies were found on the shore. They were bloated, and their legs were tied with iron chains. Their hands were tied behind their backs. Their faces were also covered in cloth. It is difficult to find out their identities,” said a Taungup resident.

Local residents cremated their bodies the same day.

Military tensions are running high in Taungup Town, with AA troops surrounding the town in recent days and weeks.

Residents speculated that the bodies were civilians killed by the regime in neighbouring Thandwe Township, where many displaced or detained civilians remain unaccounted for amid more than three months of military-AA conflict.

Junta troops recently arrested more than 10 residents trapped in fighting in Jeiktaw Ward in Thandwe Township’s Ngapali, and more than 30 residents have gone missing during the fighting in Thandwe Township, with relatives concerned about their safety.

One Thandwe resident said: “People have lost contact with their relatives as they fled the fighting. They don’t know if the missing people are still alive or dead. We request the AA to help find out if they are still alive.”

The AA is currently focused on attacking the Maung Shwe Lay naval base after seizing Light Infantry Battalion 566 and Infantry Battalion 55, and Thandwe Airport, in recent weeks.