This content was originally published by Radio Free Asia, and it is now being reprinted with permission.
Heavy artillery in Myanmar’s north killed seven individuals over the weekend, visitors told Radio Free Asia.
After the ethnic rebel army , captured a city , only 24 kilometers ( 15 miles ) from Rakhine state’s capital of Sittwe on Mar. 4 as dictatorship military battled, the majority of the occupants fled.  ,
The deaths and five more injuries were caused by a barrel blast on Saturday nights, which the Arakan Army did not cause. All patients were Rohingya living between Sittwe’s Kathe and Aung Min Ga Lar districts.
A citizen who wanted to remain unnamed for protection reasons told RFA on Sunday that two people died suddenly at Sittwe Hospital, and another two died there.
” Five died on the spot at the beginning, and two died on Sunday day”, he said. ” The second five dead were a whole home”.
The deceased were sent to Sittwe Hospital’s funeral, visitors said, adding that most of the injured were hit by debris in the mind and lower figure.
Because communications is still difficult to access in the area, residents said that children and elderly women were among the casualties. However, the names and ages of the victims were never confirmed.
RFA reached out to Hla Thein, the spokesperson for the Rakhine state, for more details about the blast, but he claimed he had no knowledge of the attack.
Defense- controlled media claimed on Monday that the Arakan Army fired into Sittwe’s Kathe community, killing the seven citizens. RFA reached Arakan Army officers to request comment on this assertion, but it was unable to do so by the time of release.
A Sittwe resident who identified himself as a member of the Rohingya group claimed on Sunday that the junta’s restrictions and travel ban have been particularly tough for those belonging to the ethnic group, who have previously been targeted by the Myanmar government.
” All is worried”, he said, asking not to be named for fear of persecution. People “live with fear and anxiety” because they do n’t know when and when a powerful weapon will fall.
Junta forces arrived in Sittwe’s Kathe area a few hours after the explosion, he said, adding that almost no one dares to move freely around the neighborhood.  ,
Residents said that while Sittwe allows civilians to go, those still living in the capital have been informed that they are not permitted to leave.
Another Sittwe resident who also requested anonymity told RFA that he believes the military dictator’s frequent attacks on civilians are unintentional.
” Big weapons have never really fallen once or twice”, he said. Because they dropped shells in private districts, not as a military destination, I doubt that the heavy weapons fire had any effect.
Visitors claimed that weapons was fired from Sittwe-based Police Battalion No. 12, but RFA has not been able to independently confirm this speech.
On Feb. 29, soldiers firing bombs into a , filled industry in Sittwe , killed 12 civilians and injured 18 more in what appeared to be another round of unrestrained human problems.  ,
Since the military dictatorship and the Arakan Army started fighting in Rakhine on November 13, 2023, a statement from the Arakan Army states that 111 civilians have been killed and 357 have been injured from.  ,
