Displaced villagers say that the military council attacked Htisone village in Hsihseng Township in southern Shan State, twice with drones, without any fighting, and some cars and houses were burned.
At around 9 am on 6 January, the military council carried out a drone attack on Htisone village in Taung Shae village-tract with the use of incendiary bombs, burning down two houses and a vehicle.
An IDP who fled from Htisone village to Hsihseng said: “The junta soldiers stationed in Loihtwea village dropped bombs on Htisone village using drones. The villagers no longer dare to stay in the village as they are dropping bombs with drones every day. A total of 24 houses were damaged or destroyed due to the military council’s attacks on the villages with more than 100 households, using incendiary bombs, drones and shelling.
According to the IDPs, a combined force of junta soldiers and the Pa-O National Army (PNA) frequently enters Htisone village to collect rations and engage in looting.
In addition, the PNA frequently conducts recruitment drives and collects extortion money when IDPs return to their homes. The PNA often resorts to terrorist acts, such as shelling and drone attacks, if it fails to secure new recruits or extortion funds, according to the IDPs
Khun Yein Yan, Military Affairs Spokesperson of the PNLA said: “Yesterday’s incident did not harm the people. The houses were burned down due to the military council’s drone bomb attacks. After receiving the news, our unit took the risk to prevent the fire from spreading to other houses, and then extinguished the fire.”
The military council is intentionally committing war crimes against Pa-O villages without the deployment and the presence of PNLA members in Htisone village.
Likewise, there were 176 aerial strikes in Pinlaung Township, the Pa-O Self-Administered Zone, in 2024, destroying 18 houses, a clinic, a school and religious buildings, according to the officials of regional social organizations.
Sent by NMG
