A woman from Yayhle village was hit when military council soldiers fired light and heavy weapons as nine military council ships approached the jetty in Shwegu Township, Kachin State, according to locals.
“The military ships have now reached Shwegu. When they approached the dock, they started firing artillery at Yayhle. I don’t know if Yayhle is completely destroyed now. We don’t have the details yet. We don’t know if they’ve fired 40, 50 or 100 rounds now. We can’t even count,” said a resident from Shwegu.
The victim of the junta’s artillery fire is a woman in her forties and she suffered wounds to her arm and back, he added.
According to locals, the junta’s nine ships had left Katha on 5 August and anchored near Kyaukkyi village in Shwegu on the night of 6 August before arriving at Shegu Jetty on the morning of 7 August.
“All the residents have fled to safety. Everyone from Yayhle, Moesit and Hsintat villages have fled. They have been fleeing since yesterday,” said a woman from downtown Shwegu.
Although the villagers are safer in the forests, their houses and livestock in the villages have been damaged.
Currently, five military trucks full of soldiers are at Lay Junction to prepare for the offensive, prompting residents to be vigilant.
The junta’s nine ships loaded with weapons have been sailing up the Irrawaddy River from the Mandalay region since July, firing artillery indiscriminately at riverside villages while ground troops raided villages, leading to clashes with defense forces.
According to locals, houses were also damaged when regime boats fired artillery at riverside villages in Tigyaing area on the Sagaing-Kachin border, killing four civilians. They also killed five civilians from Inndaeyant village, two civilians from Kyaukhtogyi village and one civilian from Paletshwe village.
The military council has used the water channels to supply its troops in Kachin State with weapons and ammunition as they have suffered setbacks on ground battles, which residents say has led to repeated displacement of residents near the Irrawaddy River and civilian casualties.
Sent by KNG.