Myanmar: Thousands who fled assault on Thantlang in urgent need of aid as junta plans major offensives

NAYPYITAW, 24 October 2021, (TON): First came the sound of explosions from artillery shells landing nearby. Next the fires started to spread, tearing through neighbours’ homes.

Then, Nuu Hta, a 57-year-old retired nurse, heard gunshots just outside her house in Thantlang, a small town in the north of Chin State.

She later discovered that what she had heard was junta soldiers shooting a local pastor to death as he arrived to put out the fires started by the shelling. Cum Biak Hum, 31, was found an hour after the shooting with two bullet wounds in his chest.

The soldiers had also cut off one of his fingers to steal his wedding ring, a local Baptist group said, adding that they also stole his watch.

A little over one month since Thantlang was shelled, the town is largely deserted, with the majority of its residents now spread across dozens of villages along the mountainous border with India, where they are struggling to survive. 

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