Military and civilians clash in Kani, Sagaing Region, leaving six locals dead

A security team comprised of locals armed with hunting rifles was attempting to intercept trucks transporting detained protesters when the armed forces opened fire on them on April 15

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 17, 2021

A crackdown by the military’s armed forces in Yangon on March 2 (Myanmar Now)

Six locals were killed during a shootout between the military and a civilian-led security team in Kani Township, Sagaing Region, on Thursday evening.

The security team– made up of locals armed with hunting rifles– was standing watch after hearing news that detained protesters were being relocated from their area, and wanted to intercept the trucks in which they were being transported.

A member of the security team told Myanmar Now that they had set up checkpoints on the Monywa-Kani road and were planning to stop the prisoner transport vehicles.

“We heard news that they were relocating about 70 protesters including protest leaders who were captured here,” he said.

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One military truck drove through the checkpoint without stopping. Soon after, some 12 trucks arrived at the scene and opened fire on the locals at around 4pm. The shootout continued until around 8pm.

The six men killed were Kyaw Hlaing Win, Zin Ko, Ko Naing, Aung Naing Moe, Tin Ohn and Win Ko. They were from Thaminset, Lal Shae and Bant Bwe Myauk villages.

A monk from Thaminset village was also arrested, and around 20 people went missing during the shootout.

The military may have suffered casualties in the clash, as locals used hunting rifles to fight back against the junta’s troops, but Myanmar Now was unable to confirm further details at the time of reporting.

Since Friday, soldiers have been stopping and interrogating passerbys in areas along the Kani-Monywa road, claiming they are doing so for security purposes.

Anti-regime protests in Kani stopped after two protesters were killed in a military crackdown in early April. However, locals in the area have said that they are ready to defend themselves against the junta’s armed forces with any weapons available to them, including hunting rifles commonly used in the area.

In Tamu and Kalay, in western Sagaing, locals have been using the same weaponry to oppose the coup regime’s suppression of their movement.

According to monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, some 728 people have been killed by the junta’s armed forces since the February 1 military coup in Myanmar.

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Monitoring group hits back at junta claim that post-coup death toll is ‘bloated’

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners said it publishes daily lists of victims and the regime’s claim is ‘unsubstantiated’

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 22, 2021

The military regime is trying to avoid accountability for its crimes by claiming that a widely cited tally of deaths since the February 1 coup has been inflated, the monitoring group behind the figures has said.

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) said on Wednesday that the coup regime wanted to “destroy the evidence of the atrocities” it had committed since seizing power.

The military regime said via state television and newspapers earlier this week that the AAPP’s count of over 700 deaths was “bloated.” The announcement said 258 people had been killed and that the victims were mostly “rioters.”

Most died during “roadblock clearing” operations or during attacks against the regime’s forces, the announcement added. Another 11 died under different circumstances such as during fights or shootings between protesters, it said.

The AAPP said the military’s claim was “unsubstantiated”. The group publishes a daily list of deaths that includes the names of most of the victims.

It also often includes their ages, their fathers’ names, and details about how and where they were killed.

The names of some of the fatalities - about 50 - are listed as “unknown”. The AAPP did not specify in its statement on Wednesday how it verified these deaths but said it had “identified bodies” when calculating the total number.

“AAPP’s 20 April fatality figure of 738 is not inflated,” the group said. “They are identified dead bodies – shot to the head, tortured, burnt alive, beaten to death, tied up and dragged along on motorbikes – perpetrated by junta troops in police, soldier, or civilian clothes,” the group said.

“Our lists are published freely online, every single day, for anyone and everyone to access,” it added.

“The allegations made against AAPP are an attempt to destroy the evidence of the atrocities committed by this junta. We can say this illegal military is committing crimes against humanity,” it added.

The regime said that 20-year-old Mya Thwe Thwe Khine, the first protester to be murdered after the coup, was killed by a “rioter”. It made the same claim about 19-year-old Kyal Sin, who was shot in the head during a crackdown on an anti-coup protest in early March.

The junta blamed Covid-19 for the death of Yar Zar Aung, who was shot in the knee and severely beaten before being taken to a military hospital in Mandalay in February.

In late March a military hospital claimed that 17-year-old Kyaw Min Latt died from falling off a motorbike, even though his murder was captured on CCTV and the footage widely shared on social media.

Authorities in Yangon also tried to claim that 39-year-old Kyaw Lin Htwe, whose body showed signs of torture, died in a motorbike accident.

The military has a history of misleading the outside world about the number of civilians it has killed, the AAPP said, adding that the real number of deaths from the crackdown on the 1988 uprising is still not known.

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Five civilians killed in clash with junta’s forces in Sagaing’s Yinmabin Township

Troops used drones to track locals’ location and fired at them with long-range artillery

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 21, 2021

Locals in Yinmabin Township, Sagaing Region, protesting the military dictatorship on March 30 (Supplied)

Five civilians were killed and five more injured after a shootout between the coup regime’s troops and locals armed with hunting rifles in Yinmabin Township, Sagaing Region, on Tuesday.

Following the clash, rumours circulated that 10 locals had died. Myanmar Now was able to confirm one death on Tuesday evening, and four more on Wednesday morning.

“It’s not true that there were 10 deaths. We’re in touch with the leaders,” a relief worker from Yinmabin told Myanmar Now.

The five casualties were Bo San, Aung San Oo, Aung Naing, Zaw Myo Aung, and Kyaw Myo Tun. They were from the villages of Win Kone, Kapaing-Theekone and Kyobin.

The fighting with locals broke out after some 200 soldiers stationed themselves on the road to the Alaungdaw Kathapa pagoda near Kapaing village.

While the locals defended themselves using traditional hunting rifles, troops took up positions beyond their range, using drones to track the villagers’ locations and fire at them with long-range artillery.

Relief workers were only able to retrieve the body of Bo San, who had suffered multiple injuries in the shelling.

At the time of reporting, Myanmar Now was still gathering further information about the five men who were killed in Yinmabin, but due to the lack of internet access to the region, such independent verification has been difficult. The ruling junta cut off mobile internet nationwide in March.

Around 10,000 residents from at least 17 villages had fled their homes due to the clashes and were hiding in the jungle, the relief worker said.

Residents in Sagaing Region’s Kalay, Kani, Tamu, Taze and Yinmabin townships have been resisting the regime’s attacks since the military began indiscriminate crackdowns on protests across the country following the February 1 coup.

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Crackdown on village in Sagaing Region leaves at least one person dead

Local residents said soldiers used drones to locate villagers armed with hunting rifles before mounting an attack with heavy weapons

Myanmar Now

Published on Apr 20, 2021

At least one civilian was shot dead in Sagaing Region’s Yinmabin Township on Tuesday after regime forces stationed there opened fire on villagers, a local resident told Myanmar Now.

Residents of the village of Win Kone defended themselves with traditional hunting rifles, but the troops took up position beyond their range, the Yinmabin local told Myanmar Now.

On Tuesday afternoon, the junta’s troops used drones to locate the village’s security team and then attacked with heavy weapons, residents said. It was unclear what weapons were used in the assault.

Local sources were still gathering information about the number of casualties in the attack at the time of reporting.

A resident of Thalauk, a village near Win Kone, said soldiers started to arrive in the area at around 3pm on Tuesday and soon after opened fire on locals armed with hunting rifles.

According to sources, residents of at least seven villages in Yinmabin Township fled their homes due to the clashes.

The affected villages include Thalauk, Win Kone and Kapaing, all located in Yinmabin Township.The coup regime’s armed forces have killed over 730 civilians since the February 1 coup, according to the monitoring group the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners.