Shwe Nwe

Myanmar military troops burned three civilians alive inside a house while torching Nanza Village, Kyauktaga Township, eastern Bago Region, according to residents in the township. 

One of the three escaped and two died from the burning, according to the local residents of Kyauktaga Town.

Nanza Village was torched by the junta military column with about 200 soldiers at 5 am on 20 July and seven houses were destroyed.

Moreover, three villagers were burned alive and two of them died in the fire.

“They were burned alive inside the house. The burnt people were local villagers. One villager named Aung Win Kyine escaped. Currently, as he was too scared, we could not ask him about the incident,” said a supporting comrade of the Kyauktaga Town People’s Defense Force.

The injuries of the escaped Aung Win Kyine (50) and the details of the incident are not yet known. 

The two people who died in the fire were said to be Saw Pi Lu (40) and Saw Bite Pu (50).

Additionally, 48 villagers from the Nanza Village were also injured and were taken to the Taungoo Hospital.

After torching Nanza Village, the military column had a clash with the People’s Defense Forces nearby Nanza Village. In the battle, about 20 military soldiers were killed, said a supporting comrade of the Kyauktaga Township People’s Defense Force.

Mizzima is still investigating to confirm the number of the deaths of the military soldiers and the details of the battle.

Currently, the military soldiers retreated from Nanza Village and returned to the Kyauktaga Township. However, the Nanza villagers are afraid of returning to the village and are still on the run.

On 21 July at 9:50 am, military helicopters were hovering over the Nanza Village Tract, Bwadikwin Village Tract, and Thamin Innkone Village Tract, Kyauktaga Township, according to the local residents of Kyauktaga Town.

It was reported that, starting from June, a military column with about 250 soldiers launched attacks in Kyauktaga Township, torching the villages and firing heavy artillery without reason.

On 5 July, the military troops stationed in the Kyauktaga Town launched heavy artillery fire which landed in Taline Khin Village, Nanza Tract destroying three houses and killing a 35 year old man, Ko Naing Naing Moe.