The junta troops burned down the entire village of Zee Phyu Kone and killed eight villagers in Shwebo Township, Sagaing Region.
A column of 100 soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee militiamen opened fire and set fire to the village of Zee Phyu Kone, home to around 1,300 houses, at around 4:00 a.m. on February 1st, according to the Bo Kyar Yine Local People’s Defense Force.
That column camped in Zee Phyu Kone village and burned people’s houses every day.
“Almost the entire village of Zee Phyu Kone is burned to ashes. It has been burning for 6 days; it is almost gone. We cannot go to see it. The army has not left Zee Phyu Kone yet,” said Ba La Gyi, who is in charge of the Bo Kyar Yine People’s Defense Force.
When the column entered the village, about 160 villagers were arrested, and about 60 were released.
“It is known that the junta column released 60 hostages from Zee Phyu Gone. They also told the released not to return to their village. Those released were the elderly and children,” he continued.
That column is still burning Zee Phyu Kone Village until the evening of today (February 7th), said a person who helped displaced people.
“The people who were released said that eight people were killed by hitting with axes—right in front of their parents. They (junta soldiers) accused them of being PDFs. The victims were young and middle-aged. All of them were civilians,” he said.
He added that junta troops killed about 40 villagers of Zee Phyu Kone within two months.
Junta troops set fire to Myo Hla Village, which is located adjacent to Zee Phyu Gone village, at around 10:00 a.m. on February 4th, and about 200 houses were reportedly burned to ashes.