Shootout in LID 66 denied

Thursday, 14 January 2010 19:05 Mizzima News

Chiang Mai (Mizzima) - News of the shooting in Pyi district, western Pegu division, Burma on Sunday evening has been denied by a military source from Naypyitaw, however, acknowledged that the situation was tense between infantry battalions under the command of Light Infantry Division 66 (LID 66) and Military Affairs Security (MAS).

The Military Affairs Security (MAS) is a separate military entity and none of its personnel were sent and attached to the Light Infantry Battalion 5 (LIB 5), as reported earlier, the source said, adding that an exchange of fire was out of the question, as soldiers are not equipped with arms and ammunitions except bodyguards and the central sentry unit of each battalion.

In recent days, rumours have been doing the rounds suggesting that tension have arisen between an Inma village based LIB under the command of LID 66 and a MAS unit.

According to the BBC Burmese Service’s January 12 report, the LIB 80 under the command of LID 66, which has been disobedient and was said to have resorted to insubordination, exchanged fire with MAS unit, critically injuring a military intelligence sergeant attached to LIB 5.

The report said, the Sergeant later succumbed to his injuries at the military hospital located between Inma village and Ywa Taung.

A separate source in the military suggested that all battalion commanders under the command of LID 66 were summoned to Divisional Headquarters and a meeting was held on the BBC’s report. The information, however, cannot be independently verified.

Rangoon based Mizzima’s correspondent said that the rumours originated from the people who lived near these battalions.