The charred remains of more than 30 people, including women and children, were found in burnt-out vehicles in Myanmar on Saturday, a rebel group and a monitor said.
They accused the military government of carrying out attack.
Myanmar has been in chaos since a coup in February. More than than 1,300 people have killed in a crackdown by security forces, a local monitoring group said.
The People’s Defence Forces have sprung up in the country to fight the junta and have drawn it into a bloody stalemate of clashes and reprisals.
On Saturday, photos appeared on social media purporting to show two burnt-out trucks and a car on a road in Hpruso township in eastern Kayah state, with the charred remains of bodies inside.
A member of a local PDF group said its fighters had found the vehicles on Saturday morning after hearing the military had stopped several vehicles there in response to clashes with its fighters nearby on Friday.
“When we went to check in the area this morning, we found dead bodies burnt in two trucks. We found 27 dead bodies,“ he told AFP on condition of anonymity.
“We found 27 skulls,“ another witness said.
“But there were other dead bodies on the truck, which had been burned to pieces so we couldn't count them.“
The Myanmar Witness monitor said it had confirmed local media reports and witness accounts from local fighters. “Thirty-five people including children and women were burnt and killed by the military on 24th December Hpruso township,“ the monitor said.
Satellite data also showed a fire had occurred at about 1am local time on Friday in Hpruso, it said.
AFP did not confirm the reports. Digital verification reporters said the images purporting to show the incident had not appeared online before Friday evening.
The Myanmar military denied the claims.
A junta spokesman, Zaw Min Tun, said a clash had broken out in Hpruso on Friday after its troops tried to stop seven cars that were driving in a “suspicious way“.
Troops had killed people in the following clash, he told AFP news agency.
PDF groups have surprised the army with their effectiveness, analysts have said, as the military struggles to break resistance to its rule.
Earlier this month the US said it was “outraged by credible and sickening reports“ that Myanmar troops had seized 11 villagers, including children, in the Sagaing region and burnt them alive.
Win Myat Aye, one of a group of politicians ousted in the coup, condemned the atrocity.
“This is a cruel present from the military to our people on Christmas Day,“ he said.
500 People from Gaza enter France
115 Special programme for artists
25 Evacuation of injured and sick
VEZEETA PROFILE
Date started: 2012
Founder: Amir Barsoum
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: HealthTech / MedTech
Size: 300 employees
Funding: $22.6 million (as of September 2018)
Investors: Technology Development Fund, Silicon Badia, Beco Capital, Vostok New Ventures, Endeavour Catalyst, Crescent Enterprises’ CE-Ventures, Saudi Technology Ventures and IFC
Electoral College Victory
Trump has so far secured 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, exceeding the 270 needed to win. Only Nevada and Arizona remain to be called, and both swing states are leaning Republican. Trump swept all five remaining swing states, North Carolina, Georgia, Pennsylvania, Michigan and Wisconsin, sealing his path to victory and giving him a strong mandate.
Popular Vote Tally
The count is ongoing, but Trump currently leads with nearly 51 per cent of the popular vote to Harris’s 47.6 per cent. Trump has over 72.2 million votes, while Harris trails with approximately 67.4 million.
The Land between Two Rivers: Writing in an Age of Refugees
Tom Sleigh, Graywolf Press
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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What is Genes in Space?
Genes in Space is an annual competition first launched by the UAE Space Agency, The National and Boeing in 2015.
It challenges school pupils to design experiments to be conducted in space and it aims to encourage future talent for the UAE’s fledgling space industry. It is the first of its kind in the UAE and, as well as encouraging talent, it also aims to raise interest and awareness among the general population about space exploration.
BIGGEST CYBER SECURITY INCIDENTS IN RECENT TIMES
SolarWinds supply chain attack: Came to light in December 2020 but had taken root for several months, compromising major tech companies, governments and its entities
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Kaseya attack: July 2021; ransomware hit perpetrated REvil, resulting in severe downtime for more than 1,000 companies
Log4j breach: December 2021; attackers exploited the Java-written code to inflitrate businesses and governments
RESULT
Huddersfield Town 2 Manchester United 1
Huddersfield: Mooy (28'), Depoitre (33')
Manchester United: Rashford (78')
Man of the Match: Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield Town)
Scores
Oman 109-3 in 18.4 overs (Aqib Ilyas 45 not out, Aamir Kaleem 27) beat UAE 108-9 in 20 overs (Usman 27, Mustafa 24, Fayyaz 3-16, Bilal 3-23)
MATCH INFO
Rugby World Cup (all times UAE)
Third-place play-off: New Zealand v Wales, Friday, 1pm
Final: England v South Africa, Saturday, 1pm
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If you go
The flights
There are direct flights from Dubai to Sofia with FlyDubai (www.flydubai.com) and Wizz Air (www.wizzair.com), from Dh1,164 and Dh822 return including taxes, respectively.
The trip
Plovdiv is 150km from Sofia, with an hourly bus service taking around 2 hours and costing $16 (Dh58). The Rhodopes can be reached from Sofia in between 2-4hours.
The trip was organised by Bulguides (www.bulguides.com), which organises guided trips throughout Bulgaria. Guiding, accommodation, food and transfers from Plovdiv to the mountains and back costs around 170 USD for a four-day, three-night trip.
WOMAN AND CHILD
Director: Saeed Roustaee
Starring: Parinaz Izadyar, Payman Maadi
Rating: 4/5
How much do leading UAE’s UK curriculum schools charge for Year 6?
- Nord Anglia International School (Dubai) – Dh85,032
- Kings School Al Barsha (Dubai) – Dh71,905
- Brighton College Abu Dhabi - Dh68,560
- Jumeirah English Speaking School (Dubai) – Dh59,728
- Gems Wellington International School – Dubai Branch – Dh58,488
- The British School Al Khubairat (Abu Dhabi) - Dh54,170
- Dubai English Speaking School – Dh51,269
*Annual tuition fees covering the 2024/2025 academic year
