The military junta burned down the village of Ahkyiban, Tilin Township

The military junta burned down the village of Ahkyiban, Tilin Township

Local defense forces and residents said that “On May 6, a military council column of around 150 men attacked Ahkyiban village in Tilin Township, Magway, Yaw, almost the entire village was burned down yesterday, and thousands of residents have fled.”

"There are only about ten houses left in the village with about two hundred houses," said a member of the defense of Tilin Township.

The military council column is still about two miles away from Ahkyiban village, so the local defense forces have not been able to clear the area yet, he said.

The Yaw Alintan, which continuously presents the local news, reported that the village of Ahkyiban, which has around 170 houses, was destroyed by fire, with only a monastery and a few houses remaining due to the fire.

"Reportedly, almost the entire village was destroyed by fire, with only a monastery and a few houses remaining. Until now, we have not been able to confirm the exact state of the damage, and we are still trying to confirm it," he said.

The military junta that destroyed Ahkyiban village by fire was a joint group of two columns that came from Tilin City and Kyauktu City. They entered Ahkyiban village on May 5th and spent the night on May 6th. The village was set on fire in the morning.

"What they are doing now is scorched-earth policy. The three battalions of Tilin, Shwe Aung Tha, and Kyauktu are forming a column together," said a member of the local defense.

Ahkyiban village is a village nine miles east of Tilin City. Thousands of residents have been forced to flee due to the military council's deployment, and the phone lines have also been cut, so they are facing many difficulties.

It is known that the column of the military council has taken the advance to the north of the village of Ahlelban and has reached the north of the village of Ahnyarban, the Yaw Alintan also reported that it is not yet known.

When the army seized power on the pretext of the ballot in 2021. From February 1, 2023, to February 28, more than 60,000 houses have been burned and destroyed across the country, including more than 9,000 in Magway, according to a research group, Data For Myanmar.

As of April 20, ISP-Myanmar has also announced that the number of people who avoided civil war in 2023, there are more than two million six hundred and ninety thousand, and Magway District has more than three hundred and twenty thousand.