Ko Han
🟥It is also said that the attack was carried out while helping a civilian with a broken down car
A drone strike killed 5 DKBA officers and a civilian while they were trying to help a broken car on a forest road, south of Myawaddy, Karen State, according to residents of Myawaddy.
On February 24, at around 11 am, a vehicle near the new Yathayt Gu in Lay Kay Kaw Township on the Hpalu-Mekanei road was hit by a drone strike while the DKBA troops were trying to help the vehicle.
“When the vehicle broke down, it just happened to drop the bomb at the right time. I don’t know if it was intentional or accidental,” a Myawaddy resident who is familiar with the incident told BBM.
According to the video received by BBM, five men were found lying on the ground with injuries, while some were motionless.
The Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) said that one DKBA captain, one sergeant, and three civilians were killed on the spot, while seven civilians were injured.
Regarding the scammer issue, some armed group comrades operating in the area commented that the military junta may have targeted DKBA troops, but BBM could not independently confirm this.
“There are both vehicles used by armed groups and passenger vehicles on that road. Recently, other roads have become inconvenient, so they are using that forest road more. The main thing is that some armed groups use that road to transport people for scammer issues, to carry necessities, and when they do bad things,” said a person familiar with the situation on the road.
The Myawaddy-Wawlay road has been abandoned since fighting broke out around the Hpalu area of Myawaddy in the middle of last year, and the forest road has been replaced with this one.
The military junta has not yet stated on the attack.
