Military Council troops threatened to burn down the entire village, after an inspection in Hpakant Township in Kachin State according to local residents. Their troops have entered and investigated Sankhar, Madeiyan, Morbon hamlets in the Madenyan- Morbon village group.

“The Army came into the village several times during these days, conducting interrogations. They also threatened to burn down the entire village if we sent a report to the KIA”, a Sankhar villager said. Since the first week of October, the Military Council troops have frequently entered Sankhar Village conducting inspections, and threatening to burn the village down.

Sometimes the soldiers took up positions in the village for almost the whole day, conducting door-to-door checks and verifying the family registrations. Locals were also intimidation by the Military Council troops during the searches, the villager added. It is no longer safe to live here. This has resulted in some anxious villagers getting out of Sankhar and taking refuge in the nearby villages, the locals said.

“The soldiers were aggressive without any cause, conducting frequent investigations, so that villagers didn’t want to stay in the village anymore. It is very hard for farmers because they are strictly monitored wherever they go. When they come back after farming, they are being questioned again on whether they spied for KIA. These conditions cause people constant problems disrupting their work and normal life.”, he added.

The soldiers occasionally fired their guns to threaten the public, some locals said. In addition to Sankhar, the Military Council troops often enter and search for PDFs in other hamlets in the Madenyan-Morbon village group.