Khaing Roe La — A woman and her son were wounded by gunfire on the evening of February 23 in Kyauktaw town, Arakan State, family members of the victims said.
U Shwe Tun Aung, the injured woman’s husband, said a Tatmadaw convoy fired guns while travelling toward the Kisapanadi River from Mahar Kangyishin Pagoda.
“The Tatmadaw’s truck drove past at around 8:30 p.m. We heard the firing as soon as the truck was gone but don’t know where it came from. My wife was making a milk bottle for our baby at that time. Suddenly we heard a loud sound and she fell down. She was hit by a bullet,” he said.
Daw Hnin Wai, 56, received a stomach wound while her son, 17-year-old Maung Gyi, had a leg injury. They were brought to Sittwe Hospital due to the severity of their injuries.
Another family member, 57-year-old Daw Thu Tu, also received a leg injury but it was not a serious one. She is being treated at Kyauktaw Hospital.
Daw War War Shwe, a family member of the injured, said no clashes were reported in the town on the day of the shooting.
“As far as we know, no one dares to go outside at almost 9 o’clock except the Tatmadaw truck. We heard the firing from them. There was no clash on that night,” she said.
DMG contacted Colonel Win Zaw Oo, a spokesperson for the Myanmar military’s Western Command, but he said that he had not yet been informed of the incident.
Arakan Army spokesperson Khaing Thukha said the ethnic armed group did not engage in any hostilities with the Tatmadaw on Sunday.
On Saturday afternoon, a Tatmadaw officer and a private were killed in an apparent shootout with AA soldiers near Kyauktaw town’s Global Treasure Bank branch. The gunfight broke out after AA troops tried to stop three men in plainclothes who they deemed suspicious.
Brigadier-General Zaw Min Tun, secretary of the Tatmadaw True News Information Team, acknowledged the death of one of its officers in Kyauktaw town, but he said the victim was knifed to death while in town to withdraw money from the nearby bank. The case was under investigation, Zaw Min Tun said, and units in the area were instructed to tighten security.
Following the incident, additional Tatmadaw troops arrived in Kyauktaw town, setting residents on edge, local sources said.
“Not a lot of people go out in the town at the moment. The town is quiet. Shops are also closed,” Daw War War Shwe said.
