On Tuesday, a child was killed and two others were injured after they accidentally detonated a leftover shell in a village in Waingmaw Township.
The students were playing after school with the shell they found near the Wu Yang People’s Militia Force (PMF) camp, which is named after the village where it’s located, a resident requesting anonymity has said. The bomb exploded after the boys brought it outside the Kachin church.
Maung Hkaw Si, 11, died on the way to the military hospital in Myitkyina. Maung Ler Luu, 10, and Maung Bya Hser, 8, underwent surgery.
It’s unclear whether the PMF, which is under the regime, fired the shell or whether it was the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).
However, another man, who also wishes to remain anonymous, said the PMF had fired at the village before. “This incident happened because there is a PMF camp in our village…As long as this camp remains here, we’ll never be safe.”
The PMF, led by Shwe Min, set up in Wu Yang in 2021 against the villagers’ wishes. The KIA attacked the group after the camp was completed.
