On Monday, junta soldiers bombarded a village in the northern Sagaing region, according to local media and rebel groups in the area.
About 100 junta soldiers invaded Kaebar hamlet in Ayardaw town, forcing people to escape in fear of arrests and deaths.
Because no one came to put out the fire, the soldiers set fire to people’s homes, destroying approximately 100 homes.
“The villagers fled into the forest after they shelled the village.”
“Then they burned the houses,” said a statement from the Ayardaw township’s local defense force.
“They began burning around 9.30 a.m. and left the village in the afternoon,” the report said.
“They shelled the artillery before entering the villages, and we the villagers fled,” a witness told dpa.
“They burned our houses; we couldn’t put it out in time.”
The villagers were left with nothing, and many were forced to seek refuge in nearby areas, according to the witness.
Photographs and videos shared online showed smoke and a burned-out village, eliciting outrage as the images spread.
Fighting between junta forces and local civilian groups continues, with Sagaing among the most affected areas.
On February 1, the military in the South-East Asian country staged a coup, deposing civilian leader Aung San Suu Kyi and plunging Myanmar into chaos and violence.
Myanmar’s military continues to carry out brutal attacks and raids on protesters and civilians across the country, ostensibly in response to resistance.