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Blasts in Myanmar's Yangon kill 2, destroy army truck

June 18, 2021

Six further people were injured after the two explosions rocked a neighborhood in Myanmar's largest city. The blasts took place near an office of a party considered to be the military's political proxy.

https://p.dw.com/p/3vCFf
File photo: Soldiers stand next to a military truck parked near the headquarters of the National League for Democracy party in Yangon.
Blasts across Myanmar have become more common as the military struggles to impose order after the coupImage: Uncredited/AP Photot/picture alliance

Two explosions on Friday killed two people, injured six and destroyed a military truck and a taxi in Myanmar's biggest city, Yangon, local media reported.

The city has been a stronghold of opposition to the junta rulers who ousted Aung San Suu Kyi's elected government in February.

According to media reports, the explosions in Yangon's working-class Tarmwe neighborhood were caused by bombs. There was no immediate confirmation from officials.

What happened?

According to the online news service People Media, a bomb hurled at military truck killed a deputy police chief and wounded four soldiers and two police officers.

A taxi exploded nearby shortly after the truck blast, People Media reported.

Win Thu, vice chairman of Yangon Rescue Committee, told Reuters news agency that the second blast killed a passenger in the taxi. The taxi driver was also wounded, he said.

"We don't know who did it. We just picked up the injured and dead bodies using our ambulances as requested. We sent the injured people to hospital," Win Thu told Reuters.

Escalating violence 

The military truck had been parked outside an office of the Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP), which is widely seen as the military's political proxy.

The junta has blamed "terrorists" linked to the deposed government for recent blasts, as symbols of military rule became key targets.

There have been almost daily small bombings across Myanmar in the past two months. Killings of local administrators and police loyal to the junta have also been reported. 

Although no one has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, they are widely attributed to the junta's opponents. 

The military's attempt to repress the largely peaceful civil disobedience movement with deadly force has fueled rather than quelled resistance. 

fb/msh (AP, Reuters)