Myanmar monastery massacre kills at least 22

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According to a pathologist's report, at least 22 people, including three Buddhist monks, were shot at point-blank range in central Myanmar last week. According to opponents of military rule, the attack on civilians was carried out by the ruling junta.

A spokesman for the Myanmar junta, which staged a coup two years ago to overthrow the elected government, said his troops clashed with insurgents in the Pinlaung area of ​​southern Shan state but did not harm civilians, Reuters reported.

Junta spokesman Zav Ming Tun said that the Karenni Defense Force (KNDF) and another group of rebels entered the village of Nan Ninet after government forces arrived to provide security with the help of local militia.

"When terrorist groups fired furiously… some villagers were killed and wounded”, — he said.

A KNDF spokesman said his soldiers entered Nan Ninet on Sunday and found corpses strewn about the Buddhist monastery.

An autopsy report by Dr. Ye Zau, who works for the Government of National Unity, a civil administration in exile formed after the coup, says automatic weapons were likely used at close range to kill 22 people, including three monks. in saffron robes.

“Since neither military uniform, nor equipment, nor ammunition were found on the rest of the bodies, it is obvious that they were civilians. All the corpses were found on the territory of the monastery of Nan Nein. It was a massacre, — according to the pathologist's report.

Fighting has raged in the area for at least two weeks now, with about 100 buildings burned at the site of the alleged massacre in and around Nan Knight, according to local media reports, resistance forces and satellite imagery confirmed by Myanmar Witness, which documents human rights violations.< br />
The crisis in Myanmar has not stopped since the military seized power in February 2021, ending a decade of faltering steps towards democracy by toppling an administration led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.

Resistance movements have sprung up across the country, including armed ones that the military junta calls “terrorists.” Some ethnic armed forces have also turned against the junta.

Aung Myo Ming, Minister for Human Rights in the Government of National Unity , stated that the junta had intensified its fighting in the last two weeks and attacked groups of unarmed civilians at least four times.

is a crime against humanity”, — he told reporters at an online media conference.

The junta denies the accusations, saying its troops only respond to “terrorist” attacks.

According to the non-profit association for helping political prisoners At least 3,137 people have been killed in military crackdowns since the coup.
The United Nations has accused the ruling junta of war crimes and crimes against humanity.

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