Karen Human Rights Group

Kler Lwee Htoo District Incident Report: Burma Army mortar shelling and drone strike killed two villagers, injured one, destroyed a house, and caused displacement in Moo Township (December 2025)

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These photos were taken by a KHRG researcher in December 2025, in Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. On 3 December 2025, at 12 pm, Burma Army soldiers from an army camp based in Moo Town indiscriminately fired six 120 mm mortar shells and conducted a drone strike into Gn--- village. The photos show damage to a house that was caused by the mortar shelling. [Photos: KHRG]

 

Part 1 – Incident Details

Type of Incident

[Shelling and air strike.] [The Burma Army[2]] conducted mortar shelling and a drone strike.

Date of Incident(s)

3 December 2025

Incident Location

(Village, Township and District)

Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract,[3] Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District.

 

Victim Information

Name

Daw[4] L---

U[5] J---

Maung[6] M---

Age

57 years old

68 years old

30 years old

Gender

Woman

Man

Man

Ethnicity

Bamar[7]

Bamar

Bamar

Marital Status  

Married

Married

Married

Occupation

Daily wage worker

Daily wage worker

Daily wage worker

Religion

Buddhist

Buddhist

Buddhist

Position

Villager

Villager

Villager

Village

Gn--- village

Gn--- village

Gn--- village

Perpetrator Information (Armed Actors)

Name(s)           

Rank

Unit

Base

Commander’s Name

Myanmar military regime [Burma Army]

Unknown

LIB [Light Infantry Battalion][8] #599 

Moo (Mone) army camp

[Senior General] Min Aung Hlaing[9] [the Commander-in-Chief of Burma’s Armed Forces and the Chairperson of State Security and Peace Commission (SSPC)[10]]

 

Part 2 - Information Quality

1. Explain in detail how this information was collected.

I [a KHRG researcher] saw information in the media [about the incident] in Moo Township, then I contacted a local coordinator [from the Karen National Union (KNU)[11]]. He provided me with detailed information. Afterward, I went and documented the information myself. 

2. Explain how the source verified this information.

Some of those who provided me [the KHRG researcher] with the information were local authorities, and some were family members of the victims. They witnessed the incident first-hand. I also conducted an interview with U C--- from Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. He is the husband of Daw L--- and the father-in-law of Maung M---.

 

Part 3 – Complete Description of the Incident

Describe the Incident(s) in complete detail.

On 3 December 2025, at 12 pm, Burma military regime soldiers from LIB [Light Infantry Battalion] #599, based in Moo (Mone) army camp, located in Moo Town, Kler Lwee Htoo (Nyaunglebin) District, indiscriminately fired six 120 mm mortar shells into Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo (Mone) Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. At the same time, the Burma Army also dropped bombs by drone onto Gn--- village. The mortar shells and bombs landed and exploded in the village. A house belonging to U R--- was destroyed.

 

68-year-old U J--- was inside his house when the drone strike was conducted. One of the bombs landed in U J---’s garden and shrapnel from the explosion hit his house and also struck U J---, severely injuring the right side of his chest. Other villagers immediately transported him to a hospital. However, because of the severity of his injury, he died after arriving at the hospital. Meanwhile, a villager named Maung M---, 30 years old, started his motorbike as soon as he heard the sound of mortar shelling, with his mother-in-law, Daw L---, 57 years old, sitting on the back of the motorbike, in order to move to another place to avoid the mortar shelling. A mortar shell landed beside the road where he was driving. As it landed close to him, shrapnel from the mortar shell hit his right temple and penetrated deeply. He died immediately. As Maung M--- was hit by the shrapnel, the motorbike crashed, causing Daw L--- to sustain minor injuries to her face and right eye. She was transported to Rk--- hospital, located in Taw Oo Town, Taw Oo (Toungoo) District, and run by the SAC [State Administration Council].[12] Because of these violations by the Burma military regime, villagers faced displacement [including to forests, plantations, other villages, and towns] and difficulties in their livelihoods.

 

U C---, the husband of Daw L--- from Gn--- village, explained: “On 3 December 2025, at 12:05 pm, my daughter opened [announced] the two-digit lottery result at my house. Then the two-digit lottery result came out as number 24. While she was about to pay those who won the lottery, the shell landed there [in the garden of U C---’s house]. At that time, there were also people who sold two-digit lottery tickets [present]. They all ran into a makeshift bunker. My daughter and my son-in-law, who [later] died, were running [to the bunker]. Then, he [my son-in-law] returned again to pick us up. When he arrived back, my wife said she would follow him. I told her, ‘Do not follow him. It is dangerous.’ Then, while she followed him [sitting on the back of his motorbike], the shell landed in front of my house. The shrapnel from the explosion had already scattered and injured someone. Then, someone [U J---] screamed to me from a distance, ‘U C---… U C---… the shrapnel hit me.’ Then, I phoned my daughter. I told her, ‘U J---, who lived opposite our house, is injured. So, come back to Dad. Your husband was carrying your mother on the motorbike and went there [departed] already.’”

 

He continued: “Then, another mortar shell landed again, and someone came to me to report the information [including that the mortar shell killed my son-in-law]. He asked another villager to transport the injured villagers to a hospital. At that time, I heard that my son [in-law] had already died. So, I asked, ‘What about my wife?’ They informed me that her face was full of blood and that she had entered a makeshift bunker. Then, after I went to check my son-in-law’s corpse, I carried his corpse back and left it at his father’s house. Then, I was searching for my wife, but I did not find her. So, I did not know which hospital she had been taken to. People told me that she had been taken to a hospital, but I did not know which hospital she was taken to. Only after they took my wife home, I rented a car to transport her to Rk--- hospital [located in Taw Oo Town and administered by the Burma Army]. I was busy with the funeral of the dead villagers [so could not transport her to the hospital earlier].”

 

U C--- added: “I no longer dare to live in my house. Also, there is no one around my village [because the other villagers had fled due to the incident]. A villager also died in front of my house [U J---, who lived opposite, died due to injuries from the drone strike]. I just live in my relatives’ houses [because I no longer dare to live in my house]. The house here is owned by my cousin, and the other house is my younger brother’s. I eat what they feed me. I locked my house.”

 

After this incident, villagers from [Gn---] village were not confident enough to live in the village. They also did not dare to go around [travel]. [Some villagers fled Gn--- village, while others remained. Some avoided travelling, while those who had no alternative continued to travel for work.] In addition, they were full of fear when they cooked their meals, worrying that the Burma Army would see the smoke from the fire and conduct an air strike or drone attack. Villagers [who stayed] in the village dug makeshift bunkers and went into them whenever they heard sounds similar to those of drones or aircraft.

 

Part 4 - Permission for Using the Details

Did the victim(s) provide permission to use this information? Explain how that permission was provided.

U C---, the family member of the victims, Maung M--- and Daw L---, who provided the information, gave full permission for it to be used.

                    

 

 

 

Further background reading on the situation on attacks on villages in Southeast Burma/Myanmar can be found in the following KHRG reports:

  • In Spite of Fear: Women's experiences navigating the compounding challenges of displacement and insecurity in Southeast Burma, July 2026.
  • “Mu Traw District Incident Report: Burma Army air strikes killed a four-year-old, injured 12 villagers, including two children, and caused displacement in Bu Tho Township (December 2025)”, September 2026.
  • “Taw Oo District Situation Update: Healthcare, education, and military activities in Daw Hpah Hkoh Township (September 2025 to February 2026)”, August 2026.
  • “Taw Oo District Situation Update: Burma Army shelling, arrests, and militarisation; drug issues; and challenges to education, transportation, and livelihood in Daw Hpah Hkoh Township (January to March 2026)”, August 2026.
 

Kler Lwee Htoo District Incident Report: Burma Army mortar shelling and drone strike killed two villagers, injured one, destroyed a house, and caused displacement in Moo Township (December 2025)

,

These photos were taken by a KHRG researcher in December 2025, in Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. On 3 December 2025, at 12 pm, Burma Army soldiers from an army camp based in Moo Town indiscriminately fired six 120 mm mortar shells into Gn--- village. The photos show the tail of one of these mortar shells. [Photos: KHRG]

 

Part 1 – Incident Details

Type of Incident

[Shelling and air strike.] [The Burma Army[2]] conducted mortar shelling and a drone strike.

Date of Incident(s)

3 December 2025

Incident Location

(Village, Township and District)

Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract,[3] Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District.

 

Victim Information

Name

Daw[4] L---

U[5] J---

Maung[6] M---

Age

57 years old

68 years old

30 years old

Gender

Woman

Man

Man

Ethnicity

Bamar[7]

Bamar

Bamar

Marital Status  

Married

Married

Married

Occupation

Daily wage worker

Daily wage worker

Daily wage worker

Religion

Buddhist

Buddhist

Buddhist

Position

Villager

Villager

Villager

Village

Gn--- village

Gn--- village

Gn--- village

Perpetrator Information (Armed Actors)

Name(s)           

Rank

Unit

Base

Commander’s Name

Myanmar military regime [Burma Army]

Unknown

LIB [Light Infantry Battalion][8] #599 

Moo (Mone) army camp

[Senior General] Min Aung Hlaing[9] [the Commander-in-Chief of Burma’s Armed Forces and the Chairperson of State Security and Peace Commission (SSPC)[10]]

 

Part 2 - Information Quality

1. Explain in detail how this information was collected.

I [a KHRG researcher] saw information in the media [about the incident] in Moo Township, then I contacted a local coordinator [from the Karen National Union (KNU)[11]]. He provided me with detailed information. Afterward, I went and documented the information myself. 

2. Explain how the source verified this information.

Some of those who provided me [the KHRG researcher] with the information were local authorities, and some were family members of the victims. They witnessed the incident first-hand. I also conducted an interview with U C--- from Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. He is the husband of Daw L--- and the father-in-law of Maung M---.

 

Part 3 – Complete Description of the Incident

Describe the Incident(s) in complete detail.

On 3 December 2025, at 12 pm, Burma military regime soldiers from LIB [Light Infantry Battalion] #599, based in Moo (Mone) army camp, located in Moo Town, Kler Lwee Htoo (Nyaunglebin) District, indiscriminately fired six 120 mm mortar shells into Gn--- village, Nyaung Pin Tha village tract, Moo (Mone) Township, Kler Lwee Htoo District. At the same time, the Burma Army also dropped bombs by drone onto Gn--- village. The mortar shells and bombs landed and exploded in the village. A house belonging to U R--- was destroyed.

 

68-year-old U J--- was inside his house when the drone strike was conducted. One of the bombs landed in U J---’s garden and shrapnel from the explosion hit his house and also struck U J---, severely injuring the right side of his chest. Other villagers immediately transported him to a hospital. However, because of the severity of his injury, he died after arriving at the hospital. Meanwhile, a villager named Maung M---, 30 years old, started his motorbike as soon as he heard the sound of mortar shelling, with his mother-in-law, Daw L---, 57 years old, sitting on the back of the motorbike, in order to move to another place to avoid the mortar shelling. A mortar shell landed beside the road where he was driving. As it landed close to him, shrapnel from the mortar shell hit his right temple and penetrated deeply. He died immediately. As Maung M--- was hit by the shrapnel, the motorbike crashed, causing Daw L--- to sustain minor injuries to her face and right eye. She was transported to Rk--- hospital, located in Taw Oo Town, Taw Oo (Toungoo) District, and run by the SAC [State Administration Council].[12] Because of these violations by the Burma military regime, villagers faced displacement [including to forests, plantations, other villages, and towns] and difficulties in their livelihoods.

 

U C---, the husband of Daw L--- from Gn--- village, explained: “On 3 December 2025, at 12:05 pm, my daughter opened [announced] the two-digit lottery result at my house. Then the two-digit lottery result came out as number 24. While she was about to pay those who won the lottery, the shell landed there [in the garden of U C---’s house]. At that time, there were also people who sold two-digit lottery tickets [present]. They all ran into a makeshift bunker. My daughter and my son-in-law, who [later] died, were running [to the bunker]. Then, he [my son-in-law] returned again to pick us up. When he arrived back, my wife said she would follow him. I told her, ‘Do not follow him. It is dangerous.’ Then, while she followed him [sitting on the back of his motorbike], the shell landed in front of my house. The shrapnel from the explosion had already scattered and injured someone. Then, someone [U J---] screamed to me from a distance, ‘U C---… U C---… the shrapnel hit me.’ Then, I phoned my daughter. I told her, ‘U J---, who lived opposite our house, is injured. So, come back to Dad. Your husband was carrying your mother on the motorbike and went there [departed] already.’”

 

He continued: “Then, another mortar shell landed again, and someone came to me to report the information [including that the mortar shell killed my son-in-law]. He asked another villager to transport the injured villagers to a hospital. At that time, I heard that my son [in-law] had already died. So, I asked, ‘What about my wife?’ They informed me that her face was full of blood and that she had entered a makeshift bunker. Then, after I went to check my son-in-law’s corpse, I carried his corpse back and left it at his father’s house. Then, I was searching for my wife, but I did not find her. So, I did not know which hospital she had been taken to. People told me that she had been taken to a hospital, but I did not know which hospital she was taken to. Only after they took my wife home, I rented a car to transport her to Rk--- hospital [located in Taw Oo Town and administered by the Burma Army]. I was busy with the funeral of the dead villagers [so could not transport her to the hospital earlier].”

 

U C--- added: “I no longer dare to live in my house. Also, there is no one around my village [because the other villagers had fled due to the incident]. A villager also died in front of my house [U J---, who lived opposite, died due to injuries from the drone strike]. I just live in my relatives’ houses [because I no longer dare to live in my house]. The house here is owned by my cousin, and the other house is my younger brother’s. I eat what they feed me. I locked my house.”

 

After this incident, villagers from [Gn---] village were not confident enough to live in the village. They also did not dare to go around [travel]. [Some villagers fled Gn--- village, while others remained. Some avoided travelling, while those who had no alternative continued to travel for work.] In addition, they were full of fear when they cooked their meals, worrying that the Burma Army would see the smoke from the fire and conduct an air strike or drone attack. Villagers [who stayed] in the village dug makeshift bunkers and went into them whenever they heard sounds similar to those of drones or aircraft.

 

Part 4 - Permission for Using the Details

Did the victim(s) provide permission to use this information? Explain how that permission was provided.

U C---, the family member of the victims, Maung M--- and Daw L---, who provided the information, gave full permission for it to be used.

                    

 

 

 

Further background reading on the situation on attacks on villages in Southeast Burma/Myanmar can be found in the following KHRG reports:

  • In Spite of Fear: Women's experiences navigating the compounding challenges of displacement and insecurity in Southeast Burma, July 2026.
  • “Mu Traw District Incident Report: Burma Army air strikes killed a four-year-old, injured 12 villagers, including two children, and caused displacement in Bu Tho Township (December 2025)”, September 2026.
  • “Taw Oo District Situation Update: Healthcare, education, and military activities in Daw Hpah Hkoh Township (September 2025 to February 2026)”, August 2026.
  • “Taw Oo District Situation Update: Burma Army shelling, arrests, and militarisation; drug issues; and challenges to education, transportation, and livelihood in Daw Hpah Hkoh Township (January to March 2026)”, August 2026.