November 8, 2022
Military council soldiers reportedly responded with artillery fire after two of their motorized barges were attacked by the Arakan Army (AA) in the Kaladan River in Kyauktaw Township, Arakan State.
Artillery shells hit nearby villages, seriously injuring five residents, including an 80-year-old man.
The seriously injured are U Maung Tu (80 years old), Ko Naing Naing Oo (31 years old) and his wife Daw Khaing Khaing Moe (32 years old), all from the same house, and Ma Moe Moe Yi (22 years old) from Shwe Pyi Thit village and a resident of Myinkat village.
A villager who was personally visited Shwe Pyi Thit and Myinkat villages said that the residents were injured by the explosion of heavy ammunition that hit the villages at around 10 am on November 4.
“U Maung Tu is in a critical condition. His injury is very severe. Others were injured in their backs, hands and legs. They have called funeral vehicles to take them to the hospital,” he said.
It is reported that U Maung Tu’s head and temple were blown off by artillery shrapnel, while his grandson Ko Naing Naing Oo suffered a wound to his left thigh.
Likewise, Daw Khaing Khaing Moe suffered wounds on his back and hands, Ma Moe Moe Yi suffered a broken outer ankle, and the woman from Myinkat village was injured on her left arm, the witness said.
Members of the ethnic army opened fire at about 9:10 am on the military boats coming from Sittwe up the Kaladan River near the sugar mill, local residents said.
After the attack, junta troops fired light and heavy weapons indiscriminately into the surrounding area, injuring innocent residents.
“They [junta soldiers] were on their way to the Operation No. (9) Command Headquarters in Kyauktaw when they were attacked by AA fighters. Then they fired weapons indiscriminately into the surrounding area,” said a local resident.
The resident added the two motorized boats were probably carrying junta soldiers and rations. He could not find out the number of troops because the fighting was still going on at that time.
On the evening of September 19, members of AA also attacked two junta boats anchored on the Kaladan River, and junta troops also responded indiscriminately with heavy weapons on the villages, injuring some residents of Nagra village from the explosion of artillery shells and some from neighboring villages.
Sent by Khaing Lu Hla (Yoma Myay)