A villager was killed and another injured in a landmine explosion in Kachin State’s Mogaung Township on Tuesday, according to local sources.
Kawng Lwang and Phaw Tu Khee, residents of Pyonthonlone, a village in Mogaung, were picking bamboo shoots outside the village on the evening of 19 July when they triggered a landmine. Kawng Lwang was killed instantly, while Phaw Tu Khee sustained injuries and is recovering at the town’s hospital.
“They were out near a farm at the foot of a hill when [Phaw Tu Khee] stepped on the trigger mechanism of the mine, which exploded right where [Kawng Lwang] standing,” Pyonthonlone resident Nyi Nyi Naing told DVB.
[related]
“[Kawng Lwang] died on the spot but [Phaw Tu Khee] only sustained external injuries and is now recovering at Mogaung hospital.”
The funeral for the deceased was held in the village on 20 July.
Both the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and government forces are active in the area where the incident took place. Local villagers said it was not immediately clear who planted the mine, but the Burmese military mouthpiece Myawady News reported the mine belonged to the KIA.