Aftershock hits Mandalay five months after earthquake
The regime’s Department of Meteorology and Hydrology reported that a 4.2 magnitude earthquake struck seven miles (11 km) west-southwest of Kyaukse town in Mandalay Region on Thursday. It was the 227th aftershock since the March 28 earthquake that devastated central Burma. Kyaukse is located 27 miles (43 km) south of the region’s capital Mandalay.
“I felt two tremors and rushed out of the office building because they were so strong,” a Mandalay resident recounted on social media. Regime media reported on Sept. 4 that since the quake on March 28, 653 people have been rescued, 3,812 bodies have been recovered and 5,104 people have been injured with five people still missing.
DVB has documented that at least 4,477 people were killed in the quake, with 2,916 bodies recovered since March 28 in Mandalay. Kyaukse residents reported that 108 people were killed with over 200 injured by the quake. Mandalay is located 15 miles (24 km) east of the earthquake’s epicenter in neighbouring Sagaing Region.
UN reports crisis in Rakhine State echoes 2017 atrocities
The U.N. released a statement on Tuesday about the worsening crisis in Burma with a focus on Arakan State, where Rohingya and Rakhine civilians are increasingly being targeted by both regime forces and the Arakan Army (AA). The U.N. Human Rights Office reports that at least 150,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since the AA launched its statewide offensive in November 2023.
“It pains me deeply to see the same death and destruction happening again,” said Volker Türk, the U.N. Human Rights Chief. He added that the situation in Arakan mirrors the 2017 atrocities perpetrated against the Rohingya, when over 700,000 fled their homes due to a military crackdown, which killed thousands. Türk highlighted that the regime has killed at least 7,100 civilians nationwide since the 2021 military coup.
The U.N. also raised concerns over abuses committed by the AA, which has expanded its control to 14 out of 17 townships in Arakan since 2023. It cited AA killings, forced recruitment, disappearances, extortion, and property destruction, which have caused “hundreds of deaths and suffering.” Türk urged the Security Council to refer Burma to the International Criminal Court (ICC) and called for urgent humanitarian aid into the country.
Life in Thailand’s refugee camps after US funding cuts
Refugees from Burma living in a camp located along the Thailand-Burma border, 99 miles (160 km) south of Karenni State’s Mese Township, told DVB that they are struggling to meet basic needs with healthcare now their most urgent priority since all U.S. funding ended on July 31. Some of the 9,700 refugees here are optimistic after Thailand announced that 80,000 refugees from the camps could apply for work permits.
However many refugees from Burma fear that implementation by the Thai government in Bangkok may be slow and that there may not be jobs available near the camp in Maehongson Province, located in northwestern Thailand. “Healthcare is now our biggest concern. If something happens, it can cost us thousands of [Thai] baht. So how can we afford to pay,” said Sae Meh, a 39-year-old mother of three and refugee from Burma.
On July 31, The Border Consortium (TBC), a Thailand-based non-governmental organization that supports an estimated 107,000 refugees from Burma living in nine camps along the Thai border, terminated most food assistance with only those classified as “most vulnerable” and “vulnerable” to continue receiving “limited in-kind food assistance,” according to the TBC.
Stay tuned to DVB English News for our feature story this weekend about life for refugees from Burma living in nine refugee camps located in Thailand.
News by Region
KAREN—Residents of Hpa-An and Myawaddy townships told DVB that two teachers and an unknown number of students were injured at two schools hit by drones in Naungtakhi and Kyaukkhat villages on Wednesday and Thursday. Myawaddy is located 81 miles (130 km) east of the state capital Hpa-An.
“A kamikaze drone dropped bombs onto the school,” a resident told DVB on the condition of anonymity. Kyaukkhat village is under the control of the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA). Hpa-An residents told DVB that two teachers and a child were injured in drone attacks on Wednesday.
MANDALAY—Tenants of the Sky Villa condominium building in Aungmyaythazan Township, who survived the March 28 earthquake, told DVB that they were unsatisfied with a compensation offer from the condo developer N.T.L company, which was announced on Sept. 1.
Ten million MMK ($2,200 USD) was offered to families with members who died inside the building during its collapse. “We want the company to apologize to us,” a tenant, whose mother died during the quake, told DVB on the condition of anonymity. A company official told DVB he’s apologized to tenants “twice.”
The People’s Defense Force (PDF) in Mandalay claimed that three transformers were destroyed in airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force on Saedawgyi hydropower station in Madaya Township, which cut off electricity to Madaya, Patheingyi, Singu and Thabeikkyin townships, on Wednesday.
Saedawgyi dam is located in eastern Madaya 47 miles (75 km) north of Mandalay. It was seized by the PDF in June 2024. A PDF spokesperson told DVB that the airstrikes are a part of ongoing regime counteroffensives against resistance forces in Mandalay, Sagaing and Magway regions.
YANGON—Residents of Tamwe Township told DVB that a singer named Mg Alpha was arrested by police at his home on Wednesday. Mg Alpha released a song called “11/Arakan,” in February, which advocates for Rakhine national pride, according to residents in Arakan State who spoke to DVB.
Police reportedly charged a 40-year-old singer named Hsu Myat Htet, who also comes from Arakan, under the Counter-Terrorism Law after arresting her at home in Tamwe on Oct. 7. The Arakan Army (AA) controls 14 of 17 Arakan townships since it launched an offensive in November 2023.
(Exchange rate: $1 USD = 4,315 MMK)
Check out our photos from the Rohingya Cultural Night hosted by the Maiyafuinor Collaborative Network in Chiang Mai, Thailand, on Sept. 3.
