The residents of Taung Pauk village in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township have fled their homes after junta troops entered the village on Tuesday morning.

Three military trucks carrying more than 100 junta troops were dispatched to Pike Thel village, from where they proceeded to Taung Pauk on foot, frightening off the local villagers, said a resident who wished to remain anonymous.

“They came in three trucks. They left the trucks in Pike Thel village, and went to Let Saung Kauk village. From there, they came into Taung Pauk. All the villagers have fled out of fear for their safety,” said the resident.

Junta troops are currently deployed at the village school. Taung Pauk is located just one mile from Kyauktaw town.

“They came into the village and went straight to the school. All the teachers and students fled when they came,” said another resident who asked for anonymity.

DMG’s repeated phone calls to Arakan State Security and Border Affairs Minister Colonel Kyaw Thura and junta spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun went unanswered on Tuesday.

More than 70 of some 300 houses in Taung Pauk village were reduced to ashes in an arson attack on September 3, 2020. The Myanmar military has denied accusations, made by several locals, that its troops were responsible for setting fire to the homes.