Junta sets fire to single village in Launglon for third time
On September 17, junta troops burned houses in Nyawpyin Village, Launglon Township, Tanintharyi Region, marking the third time soldiers have set fire to the village.
Many houses in the village had already been set ablaze by soldiers. After the troops’ departure, locals constructed temporary shacks in the village to resettle. However, this time, junta troops marched back to Nyawpyin Village and set those shacks on fire.
“It’s possible that the soldiers from the 104th Infantry Battalion (IB-104), who invaded the village a few days ago, set the village on fire as retaliation. Recently, boats carrying jet fuel were shot near the village, which might be linked to the fire,” a village said.
On the morning of 15 September, the junta was using two fishing boats to transport jet fuel on the Dawei River when the Launglon People’s Defense Force (Launglon-PDF) opened fire on them.
“We fired at the boats carrying jet fuel, which also had junta troops on board,” Launglon PDF spokesperson Comrade Shadow said.
Nyawpyin Village, home to more than 500 households, was burned by a junta column in early 2024, destroying over 200 houses. As a result, most of the residents were displaced.
Between April 2022 and August 2024, junta troops burned down at least 1,244 homes, monasteries, churches, and healthcare facilities, according to FE5 Tanintharyi, a local research group.