A high school that was hit by an artillery shell in southern Chin State’s Paletwa Township re-opened on December 12.

The shelling, in Myothit ward, occurred four days earlier, at around 4:00 a.m. on December 8.

The high school in question is located near the military compound of Burma Army’s Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 289. There has been speculation that the shell was fired by the Arakan Army, with which the Burma Army has engaged in intensifying clashes in recent years in the region, but Khonumthung News was unable to confirm the source of the weapon.

Salai Aung Min, manager of Paletwa Township’s education department, said that since the situation appeared to have stabilized in the area, they had decided to invite the students back.

“We were worried about out students. That’s why we shut down our school,” he explained.

Most of the more than 270 students in the school are the children of soldiers from LIB 289. A few others are from nearby villages.

According to the education department, five schools in Paletwa Township have been forced to close this year because of clashes between the Burma Army and the Arakan Army. They are currently all open.