Myanmar military kills at least 11 civilians in raids along Magway-Sagaing border

Junta raids on villages along the border between Magway and Sagaing regions left at least 11 civilians dead last week, according to local residents and resistance forces.On March 3, a column of regime troops entered the village of Myay Zun Taw in Magway’s Yesagyo Township, killing two women and seven men. Two more bodies, both men, were also discovered in the neighbouring village of Ma La Kar Chan, sources said.“Most of the victims were elderly people who had been detained by the soldiers and who were later shot dead,” a member of the Yesgayo Township People’s Defence Team told Myanmar Now.Myay Zun Taw is located on the eastern bank of the Chindwin River about three miles east of the junta-controlled town of Yesagyo.According to a resistance fighter who entered the village after the column left on March 5, most of its homes had been destroyed by fire. “We found the bodies of two men near the monastery, but the others were all inside charred houses,” he said.On February 26, the same junta column clashed with resistance forces near Thukhadipa, a village less than a mile north of Myay Zun Taw, according to a source close to anti-regime groups based in Myaung Township, in neighbouring Sagaing Region.At least eight junta troops were captured during the clash, the source said. The rest of the column then retreated to Yesagyo, where they remained until their raid on Myay Zun Taw on March 3. After leaving Myay Zun Taw, the column moved on to Za Yat Ni, a village about a mile to the southeast. It is currently stationed at Thar Gaung, another village less than two miles farther to the southeast, according to locals.Thousands of civilians from at least 20 villages in Yesagyo and Myaung townships have been displaced from their homes since the clash on February 26, local sources said.Most are currently taking refuge in monasteries and schools in Myaung Township, where both food and shelter are in short supply and security concerns persist.“There is no safety for displaced people as there aren’t enough bomb shelters for everyone. Even the ones that do exist are not properly built here,” said a woman involved in relief efforts for the displaced villagers.

Myanmar military kills at least 11 civilians in raids along Magway-Sagaing border

The victims were mostly elderly villagers who had been shot dead after being detained by junta troops, sources said

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