Mizzima
300 houses were burned down in Kyaikmaraw Township, Mon State when the junta shelled Dhammatha Village and then blocked fire trucks from entering the village, on 27 March 2024.
Junta boats on the Gyaing River started shelling Dhammatha Village at around 3:00 p.m. on 27 March causing fires that rapidly spread throughout the village.
“The village was deliberately targeted and shelled by the military vessels in the Gyaing River. I estimate that about 300 or 400 houses have been destroyed”, said a villager from Dhammatha.
Nai Banyar Mon, a spokesperson for the New Mon State Party (Anti-Demcracy) said: “Around 3:00 pm, the junta fired artillery at Dhammatha Village, despite the absence of any fighting nearby. The impact of the artillery shells ignited fires throughout the village.”
The fires in the village started at 3:00 p.m. and were not extinguished until 7:00 p.m., by which time about one third of the village’s approximately 1,000 houses had been burned down.
The fires were exacerbated because there was limited manpower to fight the fires and, more importantly, because junta soldiers positioned at the entrance to the village refused to let Fire engines and firefighters into the village to fight the fires.
“Firefighting trucks were on their way to extinguish the flames, but soldiers loyal to the junta stationed at the village entrance refused entry to the firefighting trucks. Although they eventually permitted to enter at around 6 pm, by that time, the fire had spread extensively and was beyond control”, said a man from Dhammatha Village.
Some villagers who have been left homeless by the fires are sheltering at a monastery just outside Dhammatha Village and others are sheltering in nearby caves. Aid workers say the displaced are facing challenges in getting food and shelter.
Dhammatha Village was home to over 5,000 people and consisted of about 1,000 houses before this latest junta attack.
