The military council force arrested and killed a villager and burned down 17 houses in Mudu village in Yebyu Township in Dawei District, villagers said.
For the clearance operation, three military columns with a large number of forces advanced the villages in the western part of Yebyu, the villages in Nabule region and the areas around the Bawa beach village, the villagers said.
“Suddenly, the army arrived in the village. So, I could bring nothing. Junta soldiers burned down expensive furniture, motorcycles and the whole house,” a local woman from Mudu village, whose house was burned down, said.
On 19 October, the military column entered the western part of Yebyu Township. The military council soldiers arrested U Thee Win who placed a fishing net in the creek in King village, according to local residents.
On 21 October, the body of U Thee Win was found in the creek with gunshot wounds, local residents said.
The military column which entered east Mudu village in the early morning of 20 October, burned down 17 houses and left the village in the evening, the villagers said.
On the morning of 21 October, the villagers returned to their village. Threatening messages: “Look! Supporters of terrorism, the whole village will be turned into ashes next time,” were written on most of the walls of the houses by junta soldiers, a villager said.
During the four-day operation, the military council clashed with People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) more than three times, locals from Mudu village said.
Since then, the people from more than ten villages in the western part of Yebyu Township including Mudu village have fled to safer places. They are in urgent need of rations and medicine, an official who is helping Internally Displaced People (IDPs) said.
Mudu village is a large village near Dawei Special Economic Zone with nearly 500 households, mainly engaged in sea fishing, farming and plantation.
Since August till October, the military council has been conducting frequent offensive operations in the western part of the villages in Yebyu Township and in the Dawei Special Economic Zone region, citing area clearance and the restoration of rule of law.
Sent by NMG.