Myanmar military forces have set fire to a local school and private residences, including a small business, during a multi-village offensive in Sagaing Region’s Pale Township.
On Tuesday morning, a military column of approximately 200 soldiers entered Hnaw Yoe village, where they reportedly torched the local school at around 08:30 local time. The troops then moved to Chin Pyit Kyin village, where they set fire to a home that also operated as an internet cafe.
The offensive is part of a larger operation that began on 21 February, involving two columns of roughly 200 soldiers each moving along the Pale-Gangaw road. Local residents report that the military has targeted about 15 villages in the area so far.
“We heard over the radio that they burned the school in the northwest of Hnaw Yoe,” a local resident told the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency (MPA). “Another column moved toward Nway Inn village, which has a hospital, and we are terrified that it will be targeted next.”
In Chin Pyit Kyin, residents watched from a distance as smoke rose from the village around noon. “They seem to be targeting specific homes they find suspicious or have information about,” the resident added.
The ongoing raids have forced hundreds of villagers to flee into nearby forests. “People are avoiding the soldiers as best they can,” a local woman said. “But if they continue burning homes, everyone will have to evacuate eventually. You never know what they will do after starting the fires.”
Sagaing Region has been the heart of the armed resistance against the military junta, which seized power in a 2021 coup. The military has frequently been accused by rights groups and international observers of using arson and “scorched-earth” tactics to suppress dissent and destroy the support base of resistance fighters.
