Children and the elderly are facing sleeping difficulties as the military council is carrying out indiscriminate artillery shelling into the villages in Kawkareik Township in Dupalayar District of the Karen National Union (KNU) every night, according to locals.
There are frequent clashes between the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) and the military council troops in Kawkareik Township. Even though there are no clashes, the military council indiscriminately fires heavy shells into the villages via the artillery hill almost every night.
“Almost every night, all the people face a lot of difficulties due to the indiscriminate artillery shelling. Especially, the children and the elderly suffer the most. They don’t dare to sleep inside the houses. They have to sleep under the house and in bomb shelters. Now the weather is cold. They are afraid of mosquitoes, snakes, centipedes and other insects. The children suffer from itching as they have to sleep under the house,” a local from new Maungma village told the KIC on condition of anonymity.
The military council usually carries out indiscriminate artillery shelling when there are clashes with local defense forces.
“Indiscriminate artillery shelling has resulted in the destruction of houses and villages and civilian casualties in the villages near Kawkareik,” a local from southern Kawkareik told the KIC.
Due to the artillery shelling following the coup, the villages from Maungma village-tract and Kawnwe village-tract, Myaukkyarin, Yankoke and Kaunghmu villages near Kawkareik face the severest destruction.
Most of the people from those villages are taking shelter at the houses of their relatives, according to locals.
On December 6, a female teacher and a student were injured by the military council’s artillery shelling.
Sent by KIC