Mizzima

Most of Lettaungnge Village in Yinmarbin Township, Sagaing Region was burnt down after junta soldiers set fire to it at 8:00 a.m. on 8 November.

Of the original 60 houses in the village, only about 10 remain standing since the junta’s arson attack, according to a member of a local resistance force.

They said: “Approximately 50 houses were completely destroyed by the fire. The village has been turned into a ruin.”

Locals believe that the arson attack was retaliation by a junta army column for a landmine attack on them the day before, at 3:00 p.m. on 7 November. The attack, which allegedly killed five junta soldiers, took place near to the Kokekosu intersection, also in Yinmarbin Township.

A villager from Lettaungnge said, "I heard that soldiers died from a landmine attack. I think that the soldiers burnt down our village because they were seriously hurt. Fortunately, no one was injured in the junta’s arson attack.”

After torching Lettaungnge Village the military column moved on and arrived in Lelngauk Village in Yinmarbin Township on 9 November. As a result, more than 10,000 residents from Lettaunggyi, Lettaungnge, Kokekosu, and Lelngauk villages are said to be fleeing the area.