18 July 2022
Fire as a weapon in Sagaing
Kanbalu
Kyi Su
Sagaing
On 18 July 2022, a fire occurred in Kyi Su village, Kanbalu, resulting in the destruction of civilian homes as well as, allegedly, at least 10 human casualties, whose bodies were burned. It cannot be confirmed if this burning occurred pre or post mortem. Other sources claim around 70 people were killed during this incident.
Myanmar Witness has identified user-generated content (UGC) depicting burned bodies, although this content cannot be independently verified at this time due its inability to undergo geolocation. Myanmar Witness has also geolocated images of burned-out motorcycles in Kyi Su.
Myanmar Witness has also investigated claims of troop movements to verify the presence of State Administration Council (SAC) forces at the time of the alleged attack.
Although reports of this village, and certain homes within it, being intentionally targeted due to the village’s large Muslim population are startling, Myanmar Witness is unable to verify this at present.
Read Myanmar Witness’ report for more information.