October 18, 2022
Military council troops who took up positions at the monastery in Kyauksone village, Yatsauk Township, southern Shan State, have reportedly fired weapons unprovoked.
Starting at 1 pm on October 17, junta troops unilaterally opened fire with light and heavy weapons into the forest in Nawnglong village tract, local residents told the Shan Herald.
“The junta soldiers stationed at Kyauksone village monastery approached Nawnglong village and started firing unilaterally at the forest with 60mm artillery at 1 pm. This has caused great concern among local residents,” a local resident told the Shan Herald.
Residents fear that members of the Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA), active in the forests under the current junta fire, may return fire and endanger the lives and livelihoods of local residents.
“The forests aren’t so far from the village. Therefore, the villagers are afraid that the bullets will hit the village if the other side fires back,” the resident added.
Moreover, the regime’s troops stationed in the monastery frequently conduct inspections with a large number of soldiers at the intersection of Tharsi village in Nawnglong village tract and at the intersection with Nawnghkio Township, residents said.
According to reports, fear has increased among residents as junta troops remain in the village and the likelihood of clashes with the armed ethnic group is high.
In Yatsauk Township, fighting between the Northern Alliance and the Shan State Restoration Council/Shan State Army (SSA) last February raised concerns among residents that another armed conflict could erupt in the area.
Sent from Shan Herald