Over 30 bodies of slain civilians recovered after Myanmar junta arson and raids in Pakokku District

Mizzima

More than 30 bodies of civilians arrested and killed by Myanmar junta forces have been recovered in Myitche and surrounding villages in Pakokku District, Magway Region, according to local aid groups and resident sources.

The violence began on 10 May when a military column of around 500 troops comprising soldiers from the Pakokku-based Light Infantry Division (LID) 101 and Pyu Saw Htee militia members from Aung Tha village entered Myitche.

The forces subsequently torched the central market, municipal wards, and adjacent villages, while executing and arresting local residents.

“As of yesterday (4 June), over 30 bodies have been recovered. They are scattered across the town on the streets, inside residential homes, and even within religious buildings,” a female aid volunteer reported today.

Volunteers and residents are recovering the remains, but identification remains difficult as most bodies are severely decomposed, according to responders.

“Although we did not face active gunfire while recovering the bodies, we have to remain highly vigilant about landmine hazards,” another displaced-person aid worker said.

According to the Anyar Land Allied Coalition, junta arson campaigns conducted from 10 May to 31 May devastated the Myitche central market, town wards, and 11 surrounding villages, destroying thousands of residential homes.

“Swei Gyi village, which comprised about 500 households, was almost entirely reduced to ashes. Nine bodies have been found there so far,” a local resident said.

Due to these military atrocities, tens of thousands of residents from Myitche and surrounding villages have fled to safer areas and are currently sheltering in internally displaced person (IDP) camps.

With their homes completely destroyed by the military’s arson campaign, arriving IDPs face critical shortages of basic food, medicine, and emergency shelter.