Junta troops are indiscriminately setting fire to people’s houses for no reason in Thandaung Town in Karen (Kayin) State.

From 5 to 7 August soldiers from the 13-mile military camp in Thandaung Town carried out military operations in the township’s wards and deliberately set fire to houses.

“It started on 5 August at a time when there was no fighting. Houses in Ward 1, Ward 3 and Ward 4 in Thandaung Town were burnt down by the Military Council. My cousin’s house in ward 1 was also burned down”, a source from Karen National Union (KNU) Brigade 2, said to Mizzima.

Junta troops set fire to more than eight houses in Thandaung Town from 5 to 7 August. Amongst those, the junta soldiers targeted the homes of a health worker and KNU members living in wards 1,3 and 4.

Since February 2023 there has been ongoing fighting in Thandaung Town between junta soldiers and joint forces from the 2nd Brigade of the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and people’s defense forces (PDFs). The fighting has forced the majority of the town’s population to flee and so far only 30 per cent of the town’s population have been able to return to their homes.

As well as the frequent arrest of residents and the torching of houses, the junta also frequently fires artillery into Thandaung Town, causing many civilian casualties. This means that the townspeople who remain are living in fear.

In July the junta also burned down three other houses in Ward 2 of Thandaung Town.