Two aid workers go missing after Myanmar massacre

Bangkok, Dec 26 (EFE).- Two aid workers from the Save The Children group have gone missing after an attack by the Myanmar military that killed at least 38 people, including women and children.

The NGO said the missing staff members were traveling home for the holidays after conducting humanitarian response work on Friday near the town of Moso in eastern Kayah state.

“They were caught up in the incident and remain missing. We have confirmation that their private vehicle was attacked and burned out,” a Save The Children statement said.

“The military reportedly forced people from their cars, arrested some, killed others, and burned their bodies.”

The nonprofit condemned the attack as a breach of international humanitarian law.

“We are horrified at the violence carried out against innocent civilians and our staff, who are dedicated humanitarians, supporting millions of children in need across Myanmar. Attacks against aid workers cannot be tolerated.”

Myanmar NGO Karen Human Rights Group said the victims of the alleged military massacre were internally displaced persons.

KHRG also posted pictures of the alleged massacre, describing it as a “horrendous violation of human rights.”

The official Myanmar media said the military killed an unknown number of “armed terrorists” traveling in seven vehicles on Friday.

It claimed that the drivers did not stop at the checkpoints when soldiers signaled them to halt.

The rebel group National Karenni Defense Force (PDF) claimed that the victims were civilians, reported the Myanmar Now news portal.

The group accused the Myanmar military of committing the massacre of civilians.

An unnamed rebel commander told the portal that around 11 am on Friday, members of his group saw smoke billowing out of the parked vehicles.

“We do not know exactly how many women, men, and children are among those burned. Some became ashes, some others were charred,” the commander told Myanmar Now.

Myanmar has been battling a crisis since the military ousted the elected government of Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi on Feb.1.

The military claimed fraud in the November 2020 elections on which Suu Kyi’s party won a landslide.

The coup sparked a wave of an uprising, with the military struggling to bring order across the country.

Since the coup, street protests have continued against the military junta.

A civil disobedience movement has paralyzed the administration and the private sector, plunging Myanmar into a spiral of crisis and violence.

The military has brutally resisted the peaceful demonstrations to restore democracy amid the worsening of armed conflicts in Myanmar.