The driver died and three others were seriously injured after a vehicle carrying migrant workers confronted gun attacks near Lawhsa Village in Waimaw Township, Kachin State, on December 9, according to local sources. 

The shooting occurred at about 4pm when the truck carrying 20 migrant workers from Tamu gold mine in Chibwe Township was on its return to Waimaw. The 39-year-old driver sustained bullet wounds to the head and left thigh, and the vehicle fell to a nearby ravine. The driver died on the way to hospital.

A man who helped with post-incident measures said: “KIA (Kachin Independence Army) reportedly carried out wrong attacks. They received incorrect information that soldiers were on board the vehicle. Only the driver was a local here. Twenty others led by U Soe Wai were returning from a gold mine. Most of them are from TadaU. The three wounded people were sent to Myitkyina Hospital as they could not be accepted by Waimaw Hospital. The driver was survived by his wife and about four or five children.”

Nine people were wounded and three of them are in serious condition. They are in need of help as they are all migrant workers.

On August 13 this year also, KIA attacked a truck carrying mules owned by the military heading towards Chibwe Township from Waimaw, and incinerated it, local sources said.