More than two dozen anti-junta fighters have been killed in a confrontation with military forces at a central town in Myanmar, as people increasingly take up arms against the junta that seized power in a coup early this year, according to residents and the media.
Fighting broke out on Friday in Depayin township in the central Sagaing region, where anti-junta fighters, described by the state-run Global New Light of Myanmar as “armed terrorists,” ambushed military forces patrolling there, killing one of them and wounding six others.
On the birthday of the Myanmar junta leader, many protesters dispense with lighting birthday candles in favor of burning his image. https://t.co/Q9Vh6fE7tI pic.twitter.com/ns2B3mO3J8
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Shortly afterward, military trucks roared into the area and opened fire on a village near the jungle to drive away members of the local defense force.
“We heard the shooting of artillery 26 times,” said one of the villagers, adding that the military forces “shot everyone who they saw on the road and in the village. They did not just have one target.”
The local fighters reportedly retreated to their hideouts.
A member of the local defense force told AFP that 17 bodies were found on Friday, while 8 more were discovered and buried on Sunday.
Trending rights tweets: the Myanmar junta doesn't want to be called a junta, one year since Oromo singer Hachalu Hundessa's assassination, Britney Spears illustrates the plight of people with disabilities, Beijing's censorship in Australian universities. https://t.co/goK0DKKqaE pic.twitter.com/pW1GXjrz6c
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The fighter said the junta has increased its presence around Depayin, causing thousands of residents to flee in fear of further military action. The Sagaing region has been the site of multiple clashes between anti-junta forces and the military.
This article has been adapted from its original source.
