A local hunter from Namhpyek village was allegedly killed by Myanmar army troops under Tanai-based Regional Operation Command near Namhpyek creek in Kachin State on April 20, according to Kachinland News on April 21.
A local source said the hunter Ta Kyaw was hiding inside a drainage pipe as fighting raged between the Kachin Independence Army’s 14th Battalion troops and Myanmar Army troops.
“Burmese soldiers saw him hiding inside the drainage pipe and they ordered him to come out. When Ta Kyaw came out of his hiding, the soldiers shot him dead,” a villager told the news service.
The fighting reportedly began on the morning of April 20 as Myanmar Army troops launched an attack on KIA 14th Battalion’s Maisak Post in Tanai Township.
A KIA officer claimed the Myanmar soldiers suffered high casualties in the battle but no exact number is available from either side. Fighting was reported to be continuing on April 21.