A spokesperson from the Karenni National Defense Force (KNDF) Central Information and Communication Department has confirmed that five civilians were killed and seven others were injured when the military council forces launched artillery attacks on villages east of Pekon Lake in Pekon Township, Karenni State. The incident occurred around noon on July 18, when artillery units of the military council based in Loikaw, Hpruso, and Moebye cities continuously fired long-range artillery shells at six villages east of Pekon Lake in Pekon Township.
The attacks resulted in the deaths of five people from two villages, including an 18-year-old man, a 30-year-old woman, and two men in their 40s and 50s, while approximately seven other civilians were injured. The bombardment also caused damage to residential homes and some religious buildings, according to KNDF’s confirmation. It is estimated that hundreds of artillery shells were fired during the attack. The military council forces have been deliberately targeting non-military civilian targets as if they were enemies, conducting airstrikes and artillery attacks, and openly committing war crimes on a daily basis, as stated in the KNDF’s report.
Currently, intense fighting continues between the military council forces and Karenni revolutionary forces along the Loikaw-Kunnar-Moebye main road. The KNDF has urged local civilians to remain vigilant about military activities and exercise extreme caution for their safety when traveling or going about their daily lives in the area. The ongoing conflict has created a dangerous situation for civilians in the region, with the military council continuing its pattern of indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas, demonstrating a clear disregard for civilian lives and international humanitarian law.
