In Case You Missed It- Two members of an international humanitarian group are now missing after government troops rounded up villagers, including women and children, shot them, and burned the bodies.
According to reporting from The Associated Press, two members of the group Save the Children were reported Missing on Christmas after Myanmar government troops rounded up villagers in eastern Mo So village, some of whom were women and children, and fatally shot more than 30 of them. The troops then burned the bodies, according to a witness and other reports.
The Christmas massacre allegedly took place in eastern Mo So village, just outside of Hpruso township in Kayah state, where alleged refugees were sheltering.
Images of the aftermath of the military’s actions spread across social media within Myanmar, fueling outrage within the country against the military government that took power in February. The accounts could not be independently verified. The photos showed charred bodies of over 30 individuals in three separate burned out vehicles.
The AP reports: “A villager who said he went to the scene told The Associated Press that the victims had fled the fighting between armed resistance groups and Myanmar’s army near Koi Ngan village, which is just beside Mo So, on Friday. He said they were killed after they were arrested by troops while heading to refugee camps in the western part of the township.”
Humanitarian Workers Missing
The humanitarian group Save the Children has announced that two members of its staff who were traveling home for the holidays after working in a nearby community were “caught up in the incident and remain missing.”
“We have confirmation that their private vehicle was attacked and burned out. The military reportedly forced people from their cars, arrested some, killed others and burned their bodies,” the group added in a statement.
State-Run Reporting
The government of Myanmar has not commented on the allegations, but reporting in the state-run Myanma Alinn daily newspaper on Christmas stated that fighting broke put in the area on Christmas Eve when members of the opposing ethnic guerrilla forces, otherwise known as the Karenni National Progressive Party, and others who are opposed to the military drove in “suspicious” vehicles and attacked security forces.
The state-run newspaper’s report also indicated that the “suspicious” vehicles contained new members of these guerrilla forces who were going to attend training to fight against Myanmar’s military, and that the seven vehicles they were traveling in were destroyed in a fire. The report gave no further details about the killings.
Witness Reports
A witness who spoke on the condition of anonymity claims that the bodies were burned beyond recognition, and that women and children’s clothes were found together with medical supplies and food.
“The bodies were tied with ropes before being set on fire,” the witness said, adding that he did not see the villagers being killed, but that he did believe that some of them were the Mo So villagers that were arrested by the military on Christmas Eve.
The witness also denied reports that the individuals were captured members of locally organized militia groups.
Independent Media Reports
Myanmar’s independent media reported on Christmas Eve that 10 Mo So villagers, including women and children, were arrested by the country’s military. Reports indicate that four members of the local paramilitary Border Guard Forces then went to negotiate for their release, and were reportedly tied up and shot in the head by the military.
