This Short Update describes events occurring in Dooplaya District in July 2025. On July 12th 2025, a 60-year-old woman from Aa--- village, Noh T’Kaw village tract, Noh T’Kaw Township, Dooplaya District, stepped on a landmine while she and her daughter were collecting bamboo shoots in the forest near the State Administration Council (SAC) army camp of Infantry Battalion (IB) #283. The explosion tore off both of her legs, caused multiple shrapnel injuries across her body, and left her unconscious. She was taken to Mawlamyine Hospital the same day, but she passed away two days later due to the severity of her injuries. The family were daily labourers and, during the rainy season, faced additional challenges due to the lack of job opportunities. As of the reporting period, the daughter has not received any support from any organisations. Villagers believe the landmine was planted by the SAC as retaliation for armed resistance groups' attacks. As a result of this landmine incident, villagers live in fear of working and travelling in the area. [1]

 

 

A villager was killed by an SAC landmine in Noh T’Kaw Township:

[Although Noh T’Kaw Township, in Dooplaya District, is largely under Karen National Union (KNU)[2] control,] the KNU cannot fully control some areas near Seik Gyi Town, in Noh T’Kaw Township. [The State Administration Council (SAC)[3]’s] Infantry Battalion (IB)[4] #283 has an army camp located near Aa--- village, Noh T’Kaw village tract[5], Noh T’Kaw Township, about one mile [1.6 km] away from Seik Gyi Town. [Meanwhile,] [SAC’s] IB #284 is based near Ab--- village, Kya Hka Chaung (T’Hka Kloh) village tract, also about one mile [1.6 km] away from Seik Gyi Town. The centre of these two camps is Seik Gyi Town, where the [SAC’s] IB #32 is based. These three battalions combined are under [the control of] one Tactical Operations Command (TOC)[6]. [The TOC army camp is also located near Seik Gyi Town]. Sometimes, combined armed resistance forces have attacked these SAC army camps using drones and snipers. [Local villagers believe that,] in response, the SAC soldiers planted landmines in villagers’ rubber plantation fields, located about six furlongs (1,207 meters) away from their camps.

In July, during the rainy season, bamboo shoots were sprouting, and villagers [from the nearby area] went to the plantation fields to collect them for food. On July 12th 2025, a villager named Daw[7] A--- (60 years old) and her daughter, Ma[8] B--- (19 years old), from Aa--- village, went to a rubber plantation about six furlongs [1,207 meters] away from [SAC’s] IB #283 [located near Aa--- village] to gather bamboo shoots. After collecting them, Daw A--- lifted the heavy bag full of bamboo shoots for her daughter, Ma B---, to carry. As Daw A--- stepped forward, she stepped on a landmine. The [landmine] explosion tore off both of her legs, filled her body with shrapnel, and left her unconscious. Ma B--- immediately called villagers by phone to report that her mother had been injured. Village leaders arranged transportation for her [Daw A---] to be sent to Mawlamyine Hospital [administered by the SAC]. She was admitted to the hospital and placed on oxygen support. However, due to the severity of her injuries, she passed away on July 14th 2025. [She received treatment free of charge.]

Daw A--- was a widow and worked in a rubber plantation as a daily labourer. During the rainy season, [following Daw A---’s death,] there was not much work available, so Ma B--- (Daw A---’s daughter) faced challenges finding a job and became unemployed.

U[9] C---, a village leader from Aa--- village, Noh T’Kaw village tract, explained to KHRG that: “It would have been best if it [the landmine incident] had not occurred. As workers, we have to go to the farms as well as into the forest. If landmines are planted, we must work and travel in constant fear. Life is valuable, and I pray that such incidents will not happen again in the future. On behalf of the victim’s family, I would like to request support from any organisation that can help them [the victim’s family].”

 

 

                    

 

Further background reading on the situation of landmines in Southeast Burma/Myanmar can be found in the following KHRG reports:

 
Thu, 18 Dec 2025

Footnotes: 

[1] The present document is based on information received in July 2025. It was provided by a community member in Dooplaya 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: #25-279-D1 and #25-279-A1-I1.

[2] The Karen National Union (KNU) is the main Karen political organisation. It was established in 1947 and has been in conflict with the government since 1949. The KNU wields power across large areas of Southeast Myanmar and has been calling for the creation of a democratic federal system since 1976. Although it signed the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) in 2015, following the 2021 coup staged by Burma Army leaders, the KNU officially stated that the NCA has become void.

[3] The State Administration Council (SAC) is the executive governing body created in the aftermath of the February 1st 2021 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. The military junta changed its name on July 31st 2025 to State Security and Peace Commission (SSPC).

[4] An Infantry Battalion (IB) comprises 500 soldiers. However, most Infantry Battalions in the Tatmadaw are under-strength with less than 200 soldiers. Yet up to date information regarding the size of battalions is hard to come by, particularly following the signing of the NCA. They are primarily used for garrison duty but are sometimes used in offensive operations.

[5] A village tract is an administrative unit of between five and 20 villages in a local area, often centred on a large village.

[6] Tactical Operations Command is made up of three battalions and a headquarters, usually under a Military Operations Command (MOC) and a Light Infantry Division (LID).

[7] ‘Daw’ is a Burmese female honorific title used before a person’s name.

[8] ‘Ma’ is a Burmese female honorific title used before a person’s name.

[9] ‘U’ is a Burmese title used for elder men, used before their name.

[10] These documentation teams, formed by groups of researchers, are founded by the Karen National Union (KNU) in the districts, and hence they are part of the KNU District staff members. Their role is to collect and document human rights violations on the ground and share them with KNU's Township and District staff, which then will be shared with the general public through the KNU's media pages and website.

[10] These documentation teams, formed by groups of researchers, are founded by the Karen National Union (KNU) in the districts, and hence they are part of the KNU District staff members. Their role is to collect and document human rights violations on the ground and share them with KNU's Township and District staff, which then will be shared with the general public through the KNU's media pages and website.

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