Junta troops loot Thandwe villagers’ homes

By Admin 20 May 2024

DMG Newsroom
20 May 2024, Thandwe

Junta troops are looting the homes of Thandwe residents who have fled fighting there over the past month, according to residents.

Junta soldiers have stolen valuables in Hninsi, Nat Taung Maw, Kyaung Kone and other villages in Thandwe Township, and have killed domestic animals for meat, said a resident of Kyaung Kone Village.

“Junta troops have been deployed in our village since the fighting [began]. After we fled the fighting, they were stealing from houses including mine. They killed and ate my two pigs. They also took all the liquor bottles from my shop,” he said.

Junta troops from the Ngapali-based Infantry Battalion No. 55 were deployed in Kyaung Kone Village, where they also reportedly torched at least 10 houses.

One resident from Hninsi Village said: “They also looted houses in our village, and took fowls and pigs. Villagers still can’t return home due to the fighting.”

Multiple displaced villagers who have briefly returned to their villages to assess the situation have reported seeing junta troops stealing from houses.

Fighting has been raging in southern Arakan State’s Thandwe Township for more than one month.

Losing ground in fighting on the battlefield, the regime has targeted residential areas with indiscriminate air and artillery strikes and arson attacks, causing dozens of civilian casualties and significant property damage.