(Vatican News) Myanmar’s military on Monday fired artillery shells at a Catholic Church in eastern Myanmar, killing four civilians sheltering there.
Sacred Heart Church in Kayanthayar Parish near Loikaw, the capital city of Kayah state, a Catholic area was the target of the attack in the early hours of May 24.
All those killed or wounded were Catholics. According to a local resistance member, 8 others were wounded. The Irrawaddy News said the military immediately removed the dead bodies. The roof, ceiling and cross of the church were damaged.
More than 300 people from at least 60 families had taken refuge in the church compound due to fighting over the weekend between the military and an anti-coup resistance group known as the Karenni People’s Defense Force (PDF).
Father Soe Naing, a spokesperson for Loikaw Diocese, said all those sheltering in the church had fled by the time church officials checked the damaged building on May 24 morning. He said thousands of people have taken refuge at churches, priests’ centers and nuns’ convents because they thought they were safe.
“The Church is responding to humanitarian assistance, but it’s a challenge for us as the number of internally displaced persons is increasing as a result of more fighting,” Father Soe Naing told UCA News. Catholics took to social media to condemn the church attack.
Tej Francis
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