At least 15 civilians including Buddhist nuns and children have been killed in fighting that broke out on Wednesday between junta troops and the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) in Zayatgyi Town in Bago Region, according to residents.
The KNLA and allied groups including the Bamar People’s Liberation Army (BPLA) and People’s Defense Forces carried out coordinated attacks on junta positions in Zayatgyi Town, including the Infantry Battalion 73 headquarters and police station, early Wednesday morning.
The regime responded with bombing raids and artillery strikes, which continued through Thursday noon, causing heavy damage to the town, residents said.
Local charities in Zayatgyi as well as social organizations from Taungoo and Oktwin rescued some residents trapped in the town on Thursday, while others managed to leave on their own, according to the residents.
“A warplane came and strafed Thayet Taw Monastery where residents were taking shelter. Three nuns and [a boy and a man] were killed. Many residents were taking shelter there. And the regime attacked it intentionally,” a resident said.
The regime attacked the Thayet Taw Monastery at noon on Wednesday, he said, adding that the two male victims were aged 15 and 21.
At least six people were confirmed killed by junta artillery strikes in Ingyinthar Village, which is located near Light Infantry Battalion 73, according to a Zayatgyi resident who helped others to flee the town.
One woman was killed and her husband and their 5-year-old child were injured when a shell hit their house in Ingyinthar. Other victims included a 13-year-old girl.
“Six people were killed in Ingyinthar alone, and people in nearby villages might also have been hit by artillery strikes,” he said.
Air attacks were also reported on Thursday morning. One woman who fled from Zayatgyi to Taungoo said she saw the bodies of three women in Kyone Par Ward as she was leaving the town, and saw the body of a man by a roadside on Wednesday.
“One woman was in the ditch. Two others were outside a shop. One of the bodies had no head. They were not far from each other. The town has been heavily damaged. Some houses were still burning,” she said.
The actual number of civilian casualties is believed to be higher. Rescue teams still can’t retrieve dead bodies due to the ongoing airstrikes, according to charity staff.
“We are now waiting outside Zayatgyi because of reports that warplanes are coming from Taungoo. We dare not enter the town if the planes come,” a volunteer told The Irrawaddy at around 4.30 p.m. on Thursday.
He said his team had rescued around 3,500 residents from the town and sent the injured to Taungoo Hospital.
Zayatgyi is in Taungoo District, which is referred to by the Karen National Union (KNU) as Taw Oo District and where KNU Brigade 2 is based. The town is on the eastern bank of the Sittoung River on the old Yangon-Mandalay road. Zayatgyi is around 25 km from the junta’s airbase in Taungoo.
The Infantry Battalion 73 headquarters, police station and checkpoints manned by two bridges were reportedly seized by resistance forces on Wednesday. Seven resistance fighters were injured in the fighting.
The regime said on Thursday that its troops suffered casualties in Zayatgyi, but reinforcements had arrived at the battalion headquarters.
