Sixteen bodies, including a local People’s Defense Force (PDF) leader, were discovered in Myinmu Township on March 2. The Myinmu Township Information Group confirmed 15 civilians and 1 PDF soldier were arrested and killed near Nyaung Yin village. “They [Burma Army] conducted an offensive at Dawei-Tar Taing village and killed those [civilians] arrested. We discovered 12 men and three women’s bodies,” said a Myinmu Township Information Group spokesperson. The Burma Army routinely conducts offensives in the 14 townships of Sagaing Region, where martial law was declared last month.
The Burma Army raided a Zero Guerrilla Force outpost in Kan Daw village on Feb. 26 by threatening to kill two boys unless they showed them its location. The boys were later killed and beheaded, according to media reports. “They [Burma Army] are doing everything that shouldn’t be done. So, we will fight for the people until the end,” said a Zero Guerrilla Force spokesperson. The National Unity Government (NUG) Ministry of Human Rights stated on March 3 that it would take action against those who commit murder and target civilians. About 100,000 people living in 48 villages of Myinmu Township have been displaced from their homes. More than 55,000 houses have been destroyed in arson attacks committed by the Burma Army nationwide since May 2021 – 43,000 homes in Sagaing Region alone – according to a report released by Data for Myanmar on Feb. 10.
