Home News Soldiers raid Catholic convent, interrogate priests in Myanmar

Soldiers raid Catholic convent, interrogate priests in Myanmar

Six priests were taken to a police station where they were questioned for almost 24 hours

A group of soldiers raided a Catholic convent in the Archdiocese of Mandalay in Myanmar on June 13 and interrogated priests over alleged links with the resistance movement.

The priests were taken to a police station where they were questioned for almost 24 hours, said one of the priests who asked not to be named for reasons of security.

He said the interrogators asked for the priests’ background and their work. Other Catholic Church leaders in Myanmar could not be reached for comment on the incident.




The reported raid on the church came days after several Catholic churches were the target of attacks by government security forces.

On Corpus Christi Sunday, the Mary Queen of Peace church in Daw Ngan Kha, Demoso town, in Kayah State, was repeatedly hit by artillery shells.

There were no casualties or injuries reported but the church suffered serious damage and several houses in the vicinity were also hit.

It was the sixth time in two weeks that Catholic churches in the region came under military attack, a local priest who asked not to be named for security reasons told LiCAS.news.

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On Tuesday, a militia group in Kayah state announced a halt to attacks on military targets after appeals from local communities to cease fighting that had displaced more than 100,000 people.

The Karenni National Defence Force, one of the largest of several civilian militias formed in recent weeks to oppose a February 1 military coup, said it had temporarily suspended offensives but remained opposed to the military takeover.

People’s Defence Forces allied with pro-democracy groups have stifled the junta’s bid to impose order, but some activists say the well-equipped military’s use of heavy weapons in response to their attacks has put innocent lives in danger.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi’s government, citing its refusal to address what it said was fraud in a November election. International observers have said the ballot was fair.

Suu Kyi appeared in court on Tuesday for the second day of her trial over a slew of charges that her supporters say are bogus and intended to kill off her political career.

Her lawyers declined to disclose details of Tuesday’s court proceedings, but said the 75-year-old was in a better condition than the first day, when they said she had appeared unwell. – with a report from Reuters

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