US urges Myanmar arms embargo after massacre

WASHINGTON • The United States has renewed calls for an arms embargo on Myanmar's junta after a Christmas Eve massacre in which Save the Children said two of the group's employees were killed.

"The targeting of innocent people and humanitarian actors is unacceptable, and the military's widespread atrocities against the people of Burma underscore the urgency of holding its members accountable," US Secretary of State Antony Blinken said on Tuesday, using Myanmar's former name.

"The international community must do more to advance this goal and prevent the recurrence of atrocities in Burma, including by ending the sale of arms and dual-use technology to the military."

Anti-junta fighters said they found more than 30 burnt bodies - including those of women and children - on a highway in Kayah state where pro-democracy rebels have been fighting the military.

Save the Children confirmed the deaths of two of its workers who had been caught up in the incident.

"The military forced people from their cars, arrested some, killed many and burnt the bodies," the London-based aid organisation said, adding that the two victims were both new fathers.

One was a teacher trainer while the other had joined the charity aimed at improving the lives of children worldwide six years ago, it said, adding that it would not identify them for security reasons.

"This news is absolutely horrifying," its chief executive Inger Ashing said. "We are shaken by the violence against civilians and our staff, who are dedicated humanitarians, supporting millions of children in need across Myanmar."

The charity, which has around 900 employees in Myanmar, has suspended work in Kayah state and several other regions.

The junta previously said its troops had been attacked in Hpruso township last Friday after they tried to stop seven cars driving in a "suspicious way".

Troops killed an unspecified number of people in the following clash, junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun said, without giving details.

The Myanmar Witness monitor said satellite data showed a fire in the area at around 1pm local time last Friday, and that it had confirmed accounts that 35 people, including children and women, were burnt and killed by the military.

United Nations under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs Martin Griffiths demanded that authorities conduct a "thorough and transparent" investigation.

There were credible reports that the civilians, including at least one child, were forced from vehicles, killed and burned, he added.

"I am horrified by reports of an attack against civilians... I condemn this grievous incident and all attacks against civilians throughout the country, which are prohibited under international humanitarian law," he said.

Myanmar has been in chaos since a February coup against the elected government, with more than 1,300 people killed in a crackdown by security forces, according to a local monitoring group.

Self-proclaimed "People's Defence Forces" have sprung up to fight the junta, drawing the military into a bloody stalemate of clashes and reprisals.

The US has slapped a series of sanctions on the coup leaders and, like other Western nations, has long restricted weapons to Myanmar's military, which during the pre-coup democratic transition faced allegations of crimes against humanity for a brutal campaign against the Rohingya minority.

The UN General Assembly voted in June to prevent arms shipments to Myanmar, but the measure was symbolic as it was not taken up by the more powerful Security Council. China and Russia, which hold veto power on the Security Council, as well as neighbouring India are major arms providers to Myanmar.

AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE