English
ကညီကျိာ်
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Print:This Incident Report describes events occurring in Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District, in December 2024. On December 30th 2024, the State Administration Council (SAC), based in K’Ter Tee camp, shelled six 60 mm mortar rounds into Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, killing a 21-year-old villager named Saw A---. The next day, on December 31st 2024, the SAC conducted air strikes on Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, injuring another villager named Saw B---. After the incident, Saw B--- faced challenges to ensure his livelihood because his house was destroyed by the air strikes. Both incidents happened when these two villagers were returning to the village from a nearby displacement site to check their houses and feed their livestock. The villagers from Aa--- village have been displaced from their village since December 1st 2024, due to armed conflict between the SAC and armed resistance groups.[1]
Part 1 – Incident Details
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Type of Incident |
Shelling and air strikes by the State Administration Council (SAC)[2] caused villagers’ casualties |
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Date of Incident(s) |
December 30th and 31st 2024 |
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Incident Location (Village, Township and District) |
Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract[3], Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. |
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Victim Information |
||
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Name |
Saw[4] A--- |
Saw B--- |
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Age |
21 years old |
43 years old |
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Gender |
Man |
Man |
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Ethnicity |
Karen |
Karen |
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Marital Status |
Single |
Married |
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Occupation |
Farmer |
Farmer |
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Religion |
Christian |
Christian |
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Position |
Villager |
Villager |
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Village |
Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. |
Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. |
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Perpetrator Information (Armed Actors) |
||||
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Name(s) |
Rank |
Unit |
Base |
Commander’s Name |
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Unknown |
Unknown |
Unknown |
[SAC’s] K’Ter Tee army camp, K’Ter Tee village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. |
Unknown |
|
Unknown |
Unknown |
Unknown |
[Unknown SAC’s] Air base |
Min Aung Hlaing[5] [Htun Aung serves as the Commander-in-Chief of the Burma (SAC) Air Force] |
Part 2 - Information Quality
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1. Explain in detail how you collected this information. |
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When I [KHRG researcher] heard the sound of air strikes and shelling, I [KHRG field researcher] was worried about [possible] villagers’ causalities. Then, I [KHRG field researcher] went to Ab--- clinic, in K’Ter Tee village tract, and met with an injured villager named Saw B--- from Aa--- village. I [KHRG field researcher] conducted an interview with Saw B--- about his injury. When I [KHRG field researcher] asked [if there were] any other causalities, he replied that a villager from Aa--- village, named Saw A---, had also been killed on a previous day [December 30th 2024]. |
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2. Explain how the source verified this information. |
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Saw B--- was in Aa--- village during the incident, and he is the [injured] victim. [The KHRG researcher also verified this information with] Saw C---, [a Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA)[6] soldier] who was serving as a security guard nearby Aa--- village, and witnessed [heard] the SAC, based in K’Ter Tee camp, fire six 60 mm mortar rounds into Aa--- village, which killed Saw A---. [Saw C--- heard the firing of mortar shells coming from the direction of the SAC army camp.] [The KHRG researcher also talked to the Ab--- village tract authority, Thara[7] D---.] |
Part 3 – Complete Description of the Incident
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Describe the Incident(s) in complete detail. |
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On December 30th 2024, at 8 pm, SAC soldiers, based in K’Ter Tee army camp, fired six 60 mm mortar shells into Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District, and killed a villager named Saw A--- (21 years old) from Aa--- village when he was returning [from a displacement site] to his house in the village to check the house supplies and feed the livestock. After the incident, KNLA soldiers [who were serving as security guards near the village] went to the incident place to check. They [KNLA soldiers] found Saw A---’s dead body [in Aa--- village] and informed the village leaders and pastor [in the displacement site]. Then, the pastor and village leaders organised the funeral ceremony. On January 3rd 2025, the pastor and displaced villagers organised a memorial service for Saw A--- at the displacement site.
The villagers from Aa--- village have been displaced from their village since December 1st 2024 due to armed conflict [between the SAC and armed resistance groups]. Saw A---’s father had already passed away. Saw A---’s mother fled to Ac--- village, Weh Pya village tract, Hpa-an Township, Doo Tha Htoo District, while his siblings fled to another place. Therefore, none of his family members were present during his memorial service. Saw A---’s mother experienced shock and had to be sent to the [SAC-administered] Hpa-an hospital after hearing of her son’s passing. People informed Thara D--- [the Ab--- village tract authority] regarding his [Saw A---’s] mother’s situation.
On December 31st 2024, at 8 am, the SAC conducted air strikes [with three aircraft] onto Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, and injured a villager named Saw B--- when he was returning [from the same displacement site as Saw A---] to the village to check his house. [Saw B--- was standing next to his stilted house when the air strike occurred. The house was also damaged.] After he was injured, KNLA soldiers, who were serving as security [guards] nearby, sent him to Ab--- clinic [which is administered by the Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW)[8]], K’Ter Tee village tract. Saw B--- received treatment from the clinic free of cost.
Saw B--- is 43 years old and has six children. His family members fled to Ac---’s cave [near Ac--- village], Lay Poe Hta village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. Saw B--- explained to KHRG: “I want to say, if the conflict ends, I don’t know what to do [for work] when I return to [my] village. We have to work for the coming year. I cannot find it [support] anywhere. I need food, clothes, and cooking materials because my entire house was destroyed [by the SAC air strike]”.
[According to the KHRG researcher,] the SAC has deliberately conducted shelling and air strikes into villages, plantations farms and displacement sites. The SAC did not attack or target their enemies. It was a violation of the Geneva Conventions and human rights. |
Part 4 - Permission for Using the Details
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Did the victim(s) provide permission to use this information? Explain how that permission was provided. |
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The [injured] victim, Saw B---, gave permission to use this information. Saw A---’s brother also gave permission to publish this information. |
Further background reading on the situation of shelling and air strikes in Southeast Burma/Myanmar can be found in the following KHRG reports:
- ကဘီယူၤဟဲလံ Aircraft coming! : Impacts of air strikes on local communities and villagers’ protection strategies in Southeast Burma since the 2021 coup. November 2024.
- “Taw Oo District Incident Report: SAC indiscriminate shelling damaged villagers’ houses and property and caused displacement in Daw Hpah Hkoh Township (November 2024)”, March 2025.
- “Dooplaya District Situation Update: SAC air strikes and shelling caused death, injury, damage, and displacement in Kaw T’Ree Township (December 2023 to March 2024),” March 2025.
- “Mu Traw District Short Update: SAC air strikes destroying civilian houses and property and causing displacement and livelihood challenges in Bu Tho and Dwe Lo Townships (April 2024)”, February 2025.
This photo was taken in January 2025, in Ab--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, Dwe Lo Township, Mu Traw District. On December 31st 2024, the SAC conducted an air strike in Aa--- village, K’Ter Tee village tract, and injured Saw B---. He was hit by shrapnel from the air strike when he was returning to the village to feed his livestock. This photo shows the injuries Saw B--- received on his wrist. He received treatment in Ab--- clinic, which is administered by the Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW). [Photos: KHRG]
Footnotes:
[1] The present document is based on information received in January 2025. It was provided by a community member in Mu Traw District who has been trained by KHRG to monitor human rights conditions on the ground. The names of the victims, their photos and the exact locations are censored for security reasons. The parts in square brackets are explanations added by KHRG. This document combines several received reports with the following KHRG internal log numbers: #25-25-I1 and #25-25-A1-I1.
[2] The State Administration Council (SAC) is the executive governing body created in the aftermath of the February 1st 2121 military coup. It was established by Senior General Min Aung Hlaing on February 2nd 2021, and is composed of eight military officers and eight civilians. The chairperson serves as the de facto head of government of Burma/Myanmar and leads the Military Cabinet of Myanmar, the executive branch of the government. Min Aung Hlaing assumed the role of SAC chairperson following the coup.
[3] A village tract is an administrative unit of between five and 20 villages in a local area, often centred on a large village.
[4] ‘Saw’ is a S’gaw Karen male honorific title used before a person’s name.
[5] A Senior General in the Burma Army who has served as Chairman of the State Administration Council, the executive body governing Burma/Myanmar since February 2021. He has also served as the Commander-in-Chief of Myanmar's Armed Forces since March 2011. Min Aung Hlaing seized power after overthrowing the civilian government led by Aung San Suu Kyi on February 1st 2021, ending a nearly ten-year period of civilian rule. He has appointed himself as Prime Minister of Myanmar on August 1st 2021, and became Acting President of Myanmar on July 22nd 2024.
[6] The Karen National Liberation Army is the armed wing of the Karen National Union.
[7] Thara (male) or tharamu (female) is a Karen term used for any teacher, pastor, or any person to whom one wishes to show respect.
[8] The Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW) is the health department of the Karen National Union. It was established in 1956 to address the lack of public healthcare resources in rural Southeast Myanmar. It currently operates a network of community-based clinics in the region, but its capabilities remain limited due to funding constraints.
