One youth was reportedly killed and several were arrested by junta forces in violent raids on Wednesday in the country’s largest city of Yangon as the regime beefed up its hunt for guerrilla fighters.
The regime has stepped up raids on homes across the city, targeting young people in particular, after suffering an increasing number of attacks by People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) since the shadow National Unity Government (NUG) declared war against the military junta.
The junta forces raided an apartment on 22nd Street in Latha Township on Wednesday afternoon and opened fire on three youths, according to locals. One was reportedly killed and two were injured in the shooting.
Four other youths were also reportedly arrested in Lanmadaw Township after the incident, locals said.
At night, the forces continued their violent raids in several townships across the city. During a raid, a convoy consisting of a military truck, police van and double cab trucks carrying junta soldiers usually appears, with personnel fully armed. The forces break into apartments and nearby buildings and raid homes.
Locals from Kamayut Township reported that troops raided two wards in the township from 10 p.m. until the pre-dawn hours. During the operation, 11 people including women were arrested, locals said.
One was first dragged from their apartment and forced to kneel down with their hands up as the troops continued their raid on a ward in Kamayut.
The Kamayut Information Community Page quoted residents as saying junta soldiers inflicted non-stop beatings on the arrested people to get information, despite the detainees begging them to stop. Two female residents in another area of the township who were taken were also beaten during questioning, the community page stated.
One also quoted a resident as saying that the belongings of the arrested people including TVs, refrigerators, laptops and bags were taken from their homes.
Since the coup on Feb. 1, junta forces have killed 1,093 people and more than 8,100 people have been arrested. Of them, 6,533 are still detained, including elected leaders, youths, protesters, politicians and civil servants who joined the civil disobedience movement. The junta has also issued arrest warrants for 1,984 people.
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