General Situation Overview:

This situation update presents the impacts of regular indiscriminate shelling conducted by the State Administration Council (SAC)[2] in Tha Htoo (Thaton) Township, Doo Tha Htoo District, in the period from December 2023 to January 2024. The shelling caused death and injuries of civilians, destruction of civilians’ properties and livestock, insecurity, displacement, and impacts on livelihoods, education and health services.

During the reporting period, the SAC increasingly conducted indiscriminate shelling in Tha Htoo Township and more mortar shells landed in village communities than in the previous months. Sometimes the SAC shelled mortar rounds into villages after being attacked by local armed resistance groups, but many times villagers did not know the reason why they were being shelled. Villagers heard the sound of mortar rounds explosions every day. Some mortars landed in their villages, some landed near the villages, and some landed in their farms or plantations. According to a local village leader, Saw[3] H--- from I--- village, Kaw Ler village tract[4], Tha Htoo Township: “They [SAC] regularly shelled mortar [rounds], every two or three days; they shelled about 20 [rounds of] mortar per time. Sometimes, they shelled about ten or sometimes more than ten [rounds of] mortar per shelling. […] The total amount of SAC mortar shells that landed in our area [I--- village] might be about a thousand rounds already. […] They did this as if their enemy [armed resistance forces] were in the community. They might keep their shelling target there [in I--- village]. It is hard to assume [the SAC’s strategy]. […] In the current situation, people do not do anything to [attack] them, but they [SAC soldiers] shell more mortar rounds into I--- village regularly.”

The SAC troops that conducted regular shelling in Tha Htoo Township are Light Infantry Battalion (LIB)[5] #206, who are based in an area between Du Yin Seik and P’Leh Hkaw villages; LIB #118, under Light Infantry Division (LID)[6] #44, whose camps are in Thaton Town; Infantry Battalion (IB)[7] #24, whose camp is based on a hill close to I--- village, Kaw Ler village tract; Military Training Unit #9, based in Ah Lan Ta Ya army camp on top of Ah Lan Ta Ya hill; LIB #9, based in Wa Pa army camp; Artillery Unit #314, based in Kya T’Raw (Zi Won) army base in Shwe Yaung Pya village tract; IB #8, based at Myay Taung army camp in Bilin Town; and Artillery Unit #402, who are based in an area between Nya T’Weh village, T’Noh village tract, and Noh Hpa Htaw village, Noh Ta Hsuh village tract. The SAC mainly used 120mm artillery for the shelling. Saw H---, the village head of I--- village, explained: “They use huge artillery weapons which have wheels. […] Most of the mortar [rounds] that landed in my village [I---] are 120mm.”

Although many human rights violations were committed by the SAC in Tha Htoo Township, KHRG researchers could document only some of the incidents due to the high security risks and travel restrictions preventing comprehensive documentation of all incidents. The incidents below were documented by KHRG researchers, who collected information and photos from witnesses and victims of the human rights violations across the District and sometimes witnessed the incidents themselves.

Situation and incidents in Tha Htoo Township

      a. SAC shelling killed a pregnant woman and caused property destruction

On December 19th 2023, from around 7 pm to 9:30 pm, SAC LIB #206 and Artillery Unit #402 shelled approximately 23 rounds of 120mm mortar into I--- village, Kaw Ler village tract, Tha Htoo Township. Three rounds of mortar landed inside the village and about ten rounds of mortar landed outside of the village. The mortar explosions in the village killed a 26-year-old woman named Naw[8] K---, who was pregnant at the time. It also destroyed one monastery building and two houses owned by Saw L--- and Saw M---. During the incident, Naw K---, her 3-year-old daughter, and her husband were hiding in a bunker beside their house which they built as a safe place for them. One of the village leaders, Saw H---, testified: “The mortar landed in the middle of their house when they [wife, husband, and daughter] were hiding in the bunker beside the house. The mortar landed close to the bunker [and shrapnel injured her]. Her house was built with bricks, but all the brick [walls] were destroyed by the mortar explosion.”

Naw K--- died from major injuries and significant blood loss caused by the shrapnel of the mortar shell that hit her house. There was a lack of transport available and first aid provisions in the community were limited, preventing a quick response to the incident. Naw K--- was injured at about 7 pm and could not access support or medical treatment until 11 pm. She had to wait for many hours during the ongoing shelling which prevented other villagers from coming to help her until after the shelling stopped, which was around 9:30 pm. Villagers felt safe to help only after the shelling stopped, and there were no healthcare workers in the village to provide first aid for her. Therefore, villagers went to her house after the shelling and took her to a community clinic in L--- village by motorcycle and tractor.  

L--- clinic is run by the Karen Department of Health and Welfare (KDHW)[9], under Karen National Union (KNU)[10] administration. The villagers travelled in fear of being shot by the SAC soldiers in the area, especially during nighttime curfew, and the road was difficult to travel on at night, so they arrived at L--- clinic at about 11 pm. The journey took around 1 hour. On arrival, health workers could not save Naw K---’s life because she had lost too much blood from the extreme injuries sustained. After two hours of treatment in the clinic, she passed away. Her three-year-old daughter and her husband were left without access to justice or compensation from the perpetrator. The village leader, Saw H---, explained: “Since we did not have any health worker in the village, we brought her directly to [L--- clinic]. We face challenges because there are no health workers or medical supplies available in our village. Right after this incident, we did not feel secure to go and help her immediately. We could help her only after about two hours, when the shelling stopped. We do not know whether it was her fate [for her life to end] or maybe her gallbladder exploded[11] caused by the extreme fear.”

As a result of the ongoing shelling in villages, villagers have been living with trauma and fear. In addition, about 40 houses in I--- village were damaged by the attacks and some were destroyed. Saw H--- reported that “some women have been suffering from heart attacks [post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD)] because they could not stand to hear mortar explosion. Not only women, but also many children have heart attacks [PTSD], and they would run, scream, cry and even become unconscious when hearing mortar explosions. […] Villagers whose houses were destroyed [by shelling] face very hard situations to rise up [to rebuild their houses and livelihoods]. They probably may not be able to [re]build houses if their children do not migrate to Thailand [for job opportunities].”

      b. Travel restrictions and prohibition of infrastructure construction

Villagers in Kaw Ler village tract, Tha Htoo Township, reported to KHRG that they have been facing travel restrictions due to the ongoing armed conflict and curfews set up by the SAC in their area. Due to ongoing shelling, villagers do not feel secure going to their farms or plantations to work for their family livelihoods. The SAC has set up a curfew from 6 pm to 6 am, meaning that villagers could not leave their village during nighttime for hunting or to take care of their livestock.

Moreover, the SAC has prohibited I--- villagers from building a bamboo bridge between I--- and Ff--- village to make their entry to the village easier. I--- village is [almost completely] surrounded by rivers so villagers use boats to leave [some parts of] the village. The villagers face difficulties in accessing healthcare, travelling for their livelihood, and other family needs because of the difficulties crossing the rivers. Therefore, villagers decided to build a temporary bamboo bridge and started the construction process in early December 2023. During the bridge construction, SAC Artillery Unit #402 [from nearby Noh Hpa Htaw army camp] shelled six mortar rounds around the bridge area so villagers who were building the bridge had to flee for their lives and stopped building the bridge. Saw H---, one of the village leaders, explained: “They [some SAC soldiers] could see us from Du Oh Seik army camp [located on a hill]. […] We just need it [the bridge] for easier transportation. […] We just built the bridge with bamboo. We had to flee because they [SAC] shelled mortar rounds. Then, we received information from young villagers who went to apply for the [Myanmar] Identification Card at the ‘Immigration and Population Office’ and they were told by the head of the office that they [SAC] would not allow villagers to build the bridge. […] They [SAC] said they might be attacked [by local armed group] when there is a bridge. […] In my opinion, there is no relation between the bridge and them [SAC]. […] It would be good if we had a bridge to make transportation easier for us, especially transportation for healthcare purposes [to travel to clinics and buy medicine from other villages].”

      c. Displacement due to indiscriminate shelling

Despite the SAC conducting regular shelling [in the area], most of the local villagers initially chose not to leave their houses because they had to protect their family properties and livelihoods, and did not want to displace themselves so they could access their livelihood means, houses, and health and education services in the villages. Mostly, villagers would flee from their villages only when rounds of mortar were landing in their villages and causing direct risk to their lives.

After the shelling on December 19th 2023 that killed a villager, Naw K---, and caused significant destruction in I--- village, over a thousand villagers from Shwe Yaung Pya and Kaw Ler village tracts had to flee from their villages in fear. Displaced villagers are from I---, O---, P---, Q---, R--- villages [and J--- village]. They have been displaced to different places; some villagers fled to the forest, others fled to their relatives’ houses in other villages, and others to towns and/or to their relatives’ houses in Thailand. Saw H---, the I--- village leader, reported to KHRG that, “There is no villager [remaining] in I--- village -villagers have been displaced because they [SAC] regularly shelled mortars into villages. […] Some villagers fled to other villages, or to Thaton Town, and some of them fled to Gg--- [a border city in Thailand] -to their relatives’ living there.” However, some elder villagers decided not to run anymore, and they just stay in the village to take care of their properties.

      d. Education challenges

Some schools in Tha Htoo Township are under SAC administration and some are run by the Karen Education and Culture Department (KECD)[12], under the KNU. Due to SAC’s regular shelling in the communities, children and teachers have been facing high-security risks to go to schools. Therefore, the schools had to close temporarily when shelling was being conducted in their area. Villagers will re-open schools when the situation improves.

For instance, the school in I--- village, which is under SAC administration, has been closed since December 19th 2023 due to the SAC shelling in this village. Some mortar rounds landed inside the school compound and damaged the school buildings. Students and teachers have been displaced to different areas so they could not study in the places they sought safety in. One of the village leaders, Saw H---, testified: “We have a government [SAC]-run school. The school must close now because they [teachers and students] do not feel secure to teach and study anymore. The two school buildings were also damaged; shrapnel broke the glass of the school windows. […] Students have fled to different places, and they cannot go to school anymore. No villager feels safe to stay in the village so how can students go to school?”.

      e. Healthcare and humanitarian assistance

The internally-displaced villagers from Kaw Ler village tract, Tha Htoo Township, could not bring enough food, warm clothes, first aid supplies and other essential items when they were forced to flee. Therefore, they are in need of emergency support, such as drinking water, clothes, food and healthcare supplies. Villagers who fled to their relatives’ houses in other villages were receiving support from their relatives and friends, and villagers who fled to the forest, like in L--- cave, could access some support from religious groups and local organisations. Saw H---, the village leader also displaced from I--- village, explained: “One senior monk from L--- village came to us and donated drinking water. We face extreme cold in this cave, and it impacts [our health] because we usually do not live in cold areas like this. […] Some villagers are sick, so we ask Kawthoolei [KDHW] health workers to come and help us [to provide medical treatment]. […] We had to pay for some medicines because they could not cover all medical expenses for us. […] Running noses and coughs are common illnesses [symptoms]. […] Some villagers experienced diarrhoea during the first couple of days we fled here; it might be because they moved to an uncomfortable place and did not have proper food like they usually have. […] We also received food, rice and vegetables from other villagers, like Hh--- and Jj--- villagers [who did not flee].”

      f. Livelihood challenges

Villagers in Kaw Ler village tract ordinarily plant rice paddy during winter and summer, but they could not work on the fields or farms and take care of their livestock to secure their family livelihoods due to the ongoing SAC shelling in the area. Some villagers had to sell their livestock at a lower price than the usual local rate and some lost their livestock, houses and other properties during the shelling and were left without access to any compensation or support. Therefore, villagers are worried about their family livelihoods and their future. Saw H--- explained the concerns to KHRG: “Some villages are hiding in fear with their children and they have to move to a safer place when they hear the sound of mortar explosion. They could not go far away from their children [when trying to secure their livelihoods, as they are responsible for them]. This is the most challenging for us [to secure livelihoods]. […] We do not feel secure to plant paddy on our farms anymore. Farming is the only job we have [for our livelihood]. […] We plant paddy in the dry season. […] People like us have to flee and cannot work on our farms so we face extreme livelihood problems. Currently, we are okay because we received food donations, but it will be worse when there is no humanitarian assistance for us [any longer]. […] We do not feel safe to work on our farms and have sold our livestock like cows and buffalos for a lower price […]. For example, one cow costs about 500,000 kyat [238 USD][13], but villagers have to sell it for only 200,000 or 300,000 kyat [95 or 143 USD] […] because they assumed they could lose their livestock [from the shelling] without receiving anything in return.” Saw H---, from I--- village, continued: “When we could stay in our homes, at least we could work to secure our family’s daily food. We do not feel safe staying in our home here, in rural communities [anymore]. We will stay home when we feel safe. […] I want to go home and stay in our house. The situation might be better if there is no shelling.”

Other Incidents in Tha Htoo Township:

      a. December 1st 2023: Shelling in Daw Ya village tract

On December 1st 2023 at 4 am, SAC IB #8, based at Myay Taung army camp in Bilin Town, shelled two rounds of mortar which landed beside Kyeh Chay Hka village, K’Dee Poo village tract, Tha Htoo Township. It did not cause any damage or casualties.

On the same day at 10:10 am, the SAC soldiers encountered a local [resistance] armed group [unknown if Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA)[14] or People’s Defence Force (PDF)[15]] in Q--- village, Daw Ya village tract, Tha Htoo Township, and fighting broke out. The SAC, including soldiers from Artillery Unit #314 and IB #8, responded by shelling 108 rounds of mortar into different areas in Tha Htoo Township. Five of the mortar rounds landed beside T’Raw Meh village, eight mortar rounds landed in Bilin Kyon Th’Waw Mu Nu village, and 40 mortar rounds landed in A’Leh Kyon area, between Q--- village, Daw Ya village tract, and Bilin Kyon village, K’Dee Poo village tract. Five mortar rounds landed in an area between Kyeh Chay Hka and Bilin Kyon villages, K’Dee Poo village tract. Additionally, 15 mortar rounds landed in an area between Q--- and Keh Moh villages and 35 mortars landed in, and beside, Q--- village. The mortar explosions in Q--- village destroyed three villagers’ houses and injured five cattle. The owners of the houses destroyed by the mortar explosion are U[16] V---, Daw[17] W--- and Daw X---. The five injured cattle later died and were owned by Daw Y---.

      b. December 2nd 2023: SAC shelling into several village tracts

On December 2nd 2023, at 4 am, SAC LIB #206 shelled two rounds of mortar that landed beside F--- village, Noh Ta Shu village tract, Tha Htoo Township. The mortar explosion killed five cattle and injured three cattle, owned by a local villager named Tee[18] Z--- (60 years old).

On the same day, at 4 pm, SAC Artillery Unit #402 shelled two rounds of mortar in Ma Kaw Koe area, near I--- village, Kaw Ler village tract, Tha Htoo Township. It did not cause property damage or casualties.

Later, at 5:30 pm, Artillery Unit #402 shelled another four rounds of mortar in Kaw Ler village tract. Two of the mortar rounds landed in an area close to Waw Poo cave and another two landed in L--- and Thee Ko villages. Also at this time, SAC IB #206 shelled another two rounds of mortar in Ma Kaw Koe area, near I--- village. It caused no casualty or [major] damage.

At 7:48 pm that day, SAC IB #8 based in Myay Taung army camp shelled four rounds of mortar in Tha Htoo Township. Two of the mortar rounds landed beside Th’Khaw Meh Th’Waw Poe village and one of them landed in an area between K’Dee Poo and Ko Mya villages, K’Dee Poo village tract. [Although not all mortar rounds may be found, the total number of mortar rounds that are shelled can be determined by the number of times the sound of the fired mortar is heard, as reported to KHRG.] SAC Artillery Unit #314 also shelled seven mortar rounds; three of them landed in an area between Kyeh Kay La and Bilin Kyon villages, one landed in Htee Hpoe Kler river near Kya T’Raw village, Shwe Yaung Pya village tract, and three landed in Klee Kloe Ka area. They did not cause casualties or damage.

      c. December 4th 2023: Shelling into Daw Ya and Shwe Yaung Pya village tract

On December 4th 2023, between 8:18 am and 11 am, SAC Artillery Unit #314 and Infantry Battalion (IB) #8, based in Myay Taung army camp, shelled 31 mortar rounds into Daw Ya and Shwe Yaung Pya village tracts, Tha Htoo Township. Four of the mortar rounds landed beside Teh Too Ko village (on the eastern side), six rounds landed in Ah Leh Kyon village, and 15 rounds landed in Q--- village, all in Daw Ya village tract. The 15 mortar rounds that landed in Q--- village injured one villager, named Saw N--- (70 years old) on his right arm, and destroyed four houses owned by Ma[19] S--- (55 years old), Daw T--- (58 years old), Daw U--- (70 years old) and U G--- (58 years old). Five of the mortar rounds landed in Taw Tu Kloe (Daung Min Taung) stream area, Shwe Yaung Pya village tract, and damaged a monastery’s water tank.

      d. December 5th 2023: Further shelling by the SAC

On December 5th 2023, between 6:45 and 7:20 pm, SAC Artillery Unit #314 shelled four mortar rounds into a farm beside Shwe Yaung Pya village, Shwe Yaung Pya village tract, Tha Htoo Township. It caused no [major] damage or casualties.

[On that day,] SAC LIB #9 also shelled five mortar rounds; one landed beside Ma Aye Chah village, and one landed in an area between Ma Aye Cha and Ka Ma So villages, Htee Nya Paw village tract, Tha Htoo Township. These also did not cause any casualties or damage to property. [The location where the other three rounds landed is unknown.]

[Additionally,] SAC Artillery Unit #402 also shelled two rounds of mortar into a farm near Kaw Ler village, Kaw Ler village tract, causing no [major] damage or casualties. 

      e. December 6th 2023: Shelling of 26 mortar rounds

On December 6th 2023, from 7:30 to 10 pm, SAC Artillery Unit #402, IB #24 and LIB #206 shelled 26 rounds of mortar [from their respective army bases] in Tha Htoo Township. Two mortar rounds landed beside Kaw Sa Taik factory and two rounds landed in an area between Noh Ta Shu village and T’Rweh Klo stream, Tha Htoo Township. Four rounds landed on a farm beside L--- village, two rounds landed beside Wa Poo Lay cave, four rounds landed beside Kaw Ler Nee village, six rounds landed in an area between Ma Kaw Ko and I--- villages, four rounds landed in an area between Htaw Pra and I--- villages, and two rounds landed in an area between Noh Hpa Htaw and Noh Ta Shu villages. They did not cause damage or injuries to civilians.

      f. December 7th 2023: SAC shelling more than 40 mortar rounds

On December 7th 2023, between 12:20 pm and 9:10 pm, SAC Artillery Unit #314 shelled 23 rounds of mortar. Four rounds landed in the cemetery in P--- village, four rounds landed beside O--- village, six rounds landed in Htee Hpoe Naw Boe area, on O--- hill, two rounds landed on T’Hkaw Wah Loo hill, four rounds landed in Law Taw Tu stream, and three rounds landed beside Pa Aww Ko village. During the shelling, one P--- villager, named Saw Ea--- (46 years old), was injured on his head, neck and leg. He died as a result of these major injuries. Shrapnel from the mortar explosion injured three cattle in O--- village, Shwe Yaung Pya village tract. One cow was owned by Naw D--- (36 years old), one cow was owned by Naw B--- (57 years old), and one cow was owned by Naw C--- (47 years old).

On the same day, from 4:37 to 9:20 pm, SAC LIB #9 shelled more than 17 mortar rounds in Tha Htoo Township. Two rounds landed in Chaung Maing Kon village without causing damage or injury, one round landed beside O--- village and another one landed in O--- village. The mortar explosion in O--- village damaged or/and destroyed six houses, including those owned by Naw Aa--- (59 years old), Naw Bb--- (45 years old), Naw Cc--- (60 years old), Saw Dd--- (57 years old) and Saw Ee--- (68 years old). Six mortar rounds landed beside K’Law Kher village, two rounds landed in an area between M’Ya Kon and K’Law Kher villages, and three rounds landed beside M’Ya Kon village; none causing injury or damage. Four rounds landed beside Htee Nya Paw village, without causing damage or injury.

At 5 pm, LIB #206 also shelled two rounds of mortar in an area between Htaw Pra village and Kaw Sa Taik factory, Noh Ta Shu village tract, without causing damage or injury.  

      g. December 10th 2023: Further SAC shelling

On December 10th 2023, from 6:50 to 7:30 pm, SAC Artillery Unit #314 shelled four rounds of mortar that landed beside Lah Aww Kher village cemetery, Shwe Yuang Pya village tract, Tha Htoo Township, causing no damage or injury.

On the same day, LIB #9 also shelled four mortar rounds which landed beside Htee Nya Paw village, Htee Nya Paw village tract, without causing damage or casualties.

Further background reading on the human rights situation in Doo Tha Htoo District can be found in the following KHRG reports:

• “Doo Tha Htoo District Situation Update: SAC shelling into villages in Tha Htoo Township, causing injuries and destruction (September 2022 to February 2023)”, March 2024
• Striking Fear: Impacts of State Administration Council (SAC) shelling on villagers’ lives in Southeast Burma (January to October 2023), December 2023
• “Doo Tha Htoo District Situation Update: Two villagers were killed and 17 villagers were injured by SAC’s indiscriminate shelling in Kyeh Htoh Township (December 2022 to February 2023)”, August 2023