More homes destroyed in Myanmar shelling: Reports

BANGKOK • Myanmar troops have shelled a restive western town, with an ensuing fire destroying dozens of houses, as well as the office of charity Save the Children, witnesses and media reported.

The country has been in chaos since a coup in February, with more than 1,200 people killed in a crackdown on dissent, according to a local monitoring group.

Across the country, "self-defence forces" have sprung up to take on the junta, escalating attacks and bloody reprisals.

Junta troops shelled the town of Thantlang in western Chin state after a confrontation with a local self-defence force, according to Khit Thit Media and The Chindwin news outlet.

A Thantlang resident who had fled the town following earlier clashes said the shelling began after members of the local force captured a soldier.

"Soon after it happened, heavy artillery was fired," he said, adding that he heard that between 80 and 100 houses had been destroyed. "We don't know if houses were burned after being hit or if (the troops) set fire to the houses."

"We... don't even know what to say," said one woman still living in the town, who said her house had been destroyed.

Pictures published on local media showed pillars of smoke billowing into the sky from the town perched amid green hills.

"At least 100 buildings are thought to have been destroyed so far by the fire... which reportedly broke out following the use of heavy weapons," Save the Children said in a statement.

"Fire continues to tear through the town and there is no fire service available to control the blaze," it said, adding that one of its offices had been damaged.

Most of Thantlang's 7,500 inhabitants left the town during clashes last month, with many fleeing across the border to India. Save the Children said the town was "largely deserted" when the shelling occurred and its staff had already left following the earlier violence.

In May, government forces used artillery to flush out rebels from the town of Mindat in the southern part of Chin state and later cut off its water supply, according to a spokesman for a local insurgent group.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE