US Embassy Issues Warning after Clashes in Myanmar


US Embassy Issues Warning after Clashes in Myanmar

TEHRAN (Tasnim) - The US embassy in Myanmar on Wednesday issued a warning to its citizens travelling in eastern Myanmar after clashes between the military and ethnic minority rebels.

Various rebels groups have battled the central government in Myanmar since shortly after its independence in 1948. While the government has in recent years struck ceasefires with almost all factions, clashes occasionally flare up.

The US embassy said incidents over the past week included a rocket-propelled grenade attack on a bus in Karen state and the discovery of two improvised explosive devices in the Karen state town of Myawaddy on the border with Thailand.

"If you see something suspicious, leave the area immediately and report it to local authorities," the embassy posted on its Twitter account.

"Do not touch, move, or tamper with any suspicious package."

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack on the bus and Myanmar officials have not said if there were casualties, Reuters reported.

Media has reported clashes during the past week between the military and the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army and a faction of the Karen National Union (KNU), ethnic minority guerrilla factions that have ceasefire agreements with the government.

Myanmar military and government officials were not available for comment.

Thailand put its troops on the border on high alert this week because of the clashes in Karen state, said Paradorn Pattanathabutr, a security adviser in the office of Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha.

 

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