One Dead After Myanmar Rebels Attack Kayah State Celebration: Junta

By AFP 16 January 2023

BANGKOK—One person was killed and eight others wounded when rebels opposed to the ruling junta attacked a state celebration in eastern Myanmar on Sunday, the military said.

The nation has been in turmoil since Daw Aung San Suu Kyi’s civilian government was toppled in an army coup almost two years ago.

Long-established ethnic rebel groups, as well as dozens of People’s Defense Force (PDF) groups, have emerged in opposition.

The junta said one man was killed when a rebel group and a PDF grouped shelled an event in eastern Kayah State’s capital Loikaw early Sunday as people gathered to celebrate the anniversary of the state’s recognition.

“The artillery fell at the celebration area near city hall and at the ward where people were staying,” a junta statement said.

Among those wounded were six students, as well as a man and a woman, the military said, adding that some security services personnel were also hurt.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.

More than 2,700 civilians have been killed since the military grabbed power in February 2021, according to a local monitoring group.

The junta blames anti-coup fighters for a civilian death toll it has put at almost 3,900.