Military Abducts Civilians, Burns Home In Katha
By Network Media Group
Friday, February 24, 2023
A regime column passing through Katha Township has arrested 14 villagers and burnt down several houses in Sagaing Region near the border with Kachin State.
“They are on their way to Thagaya, which is near Kalon. Last night they burnt down six houses in Kalon and another in the village this morning,” a local told NMG on condition of anonymity.
The soldiers stayed in Kalon from 19 to 20 February, firing both light and heavy weapons before abducting villagers as human shields.
“They want to send their injured soldiers to the hospital and are asking the civilian resistance groups to open the road,” said another man who also wished to remain anonymous. The groups said they would let them pass if all military personnel left the area, but they refused to back down.
The column, which came from Htityaing Township to patrol Kalon, Thagaya, Ohn Taw and Lay Bo in Katha, told villagers to keep lights on in their houses at night or they would burn them down.
According to reports on the ground, the military launched a new offensive against resistance groups between Sagaing Region and Kachin State in early February, sending soldiers from village to village to torch houses and arrest anyone whoever is left.
