Residents of northern Ywangan Township, southern Shan State, are living in fear following a wave of armed raids by Myanmar military troops and Pyu Saw Hti militia members, who reportedly stormed several villages and threatened civilians at gunpoint.

According to locals, the latest incident occurred around 8 a.m. on July 17, when three vehicles carrying junta soldiers and pro-military Pyu Saw Hti fighters entered villages west of Ywangan town. Armed personnel conducted door-to-door searches, arresting residents and forcing them to assemble at a local school, where they were interrogated and threatened.

“When the soldiers suddenly arrived, people panicked. Those who heard the vehicles coming fled and hid. Others were rounded up and taken to the school,” a local resident told SHAN. “The soldiers warned villagers that they must protect the Pyu Saw Hti. If anything happened to the militia, the community would suffer the consequences.”

Witnesses said the joint force, comprising around 40 armed men, also confiscated motorcycles from villagers to move between communities more quickly.

Many residents, particularly women and children, were left traumatized. A woman in her 30s, still visibly distressed, shared her experience:

“They arrived with weapons, and we didn’t know what to do. We were terrified they might harm our children.”

Tensions in the area have been rising since late June, when a monk from Da Pin Pyaw Village went missing under suspicious circumstances. In response, military forces reportedly escalated patrols and launched daily raids on surrounding villages, instilling fear and prompting some residents to flee their homes.

Community leaders and rights observers have expressed concern about the increasing militarization of rural Shan State and the use of proxy militias like Pyu Saw Hti to intimidate civilians and suppress dissent.