Junta troops have been deploying and are operating in ambush positions along the Thanbyuzayat- Anankwin road, which connects Mon and Karen states. From their position they have recently been launching targeted shootings of local residents.
The junta has banned travel along the Thanbyuzayat-Anankwin road section after 6 pm.
According to a resident living along the road, on the night of June 30, a 30-year-old Karen youth from Htee Kha lae village, was returning from a plantation was shot and killed without being stopped or questioned by junta troops.
“On that day, a villager from Htee Kha Lae was shot dead between Ta Nyin and Yet Phaw. In this area, travel is completely restricted after 6 pm. That is why he was likely returning from his plantation after 8 pm. The troops saw him and started shooting” the resident said.
According to local residents, although no permanent checkpoints have been established along the Thanbyuzayat- Anankwin road section, junta forces are conducting random inspections on local residents and carrying out evening patrols in nearby villages.
Last year, there were similar incidents where two residents were shot and killed by junta troops along the same road section.
Along the Thanbyuzayat-Anankwin road, there are numerous small villages, including Sakhan gyi, Zee Hnit Pin, Lut Shan, Ta Nyin, Yeth Paw, Hpar Yar, Win Khana, Pu Taw and Anankwin, where joint revolutionary forces also maintain active military operations.
As a result, the junta is facing significant challenges in sending reinforcements from Thanbyuzayat town to the Anankwin tactical base and also junta columns moving into the tactical base are frequently hit by ambush attacks.
In their attempts to gain full control of the road section, the junta has also been firing heavy artillery from the Anankwin tactical base targeting villages suspected of harboring joint revolutionary forces.
According to International Humanitarian law “shooting any passersby without questioning” constitutes an indiscriminate attack and amounts to a war crime committed against civilians.
