NAYPYITAW, 29 September 2021, (TON): Two civilians were killed and 30 houses burned down by Myanmar army troops during two days of battles with local resistance forces in Kayah (Karenni) State’s Demoso Township over the weekend.

A spokesperson for the Karenni National Defence Force (KNDF) said that the burned remains of one person was found with the individual’s hands tied behind their back in a car parked near Kone Thar village, where the fighting occurred.

He added that the car was travelling from Demoso town, and that the KNDF had warned those in it to turn around due to the ongoing fighting. Junta troops likely started shooting at the vehicle as it neared the village, he speculated.

The KNDF spokesperson told media “we actually tried to stop the car and told them to turn back because there was a battle going on, but they didn’t stop. They eventually got burned alive by the military. We still cannot confirm how many people were in that car.”

The military council’s troops have been struggling to confront the many local defence forces active around Demoso, which is 10 miles from the Kayah State capital of Loikaw.

The Progressive Karenni People’s Force (PKPF), a youth-led community organisation, released a statement on Monday saying that a 70-year-old man from Kone Thar known as U Gyi Kyaw was killed by artillery shells fired by the military in Kone Thar.