Meikhtila (Myanmar): Myanmar’s army took control of a ruined central city on Saturday, regaining control after several days of clashes between Buddhists and Muslims that killed dozens of people and left scores of buildings in flames in the worst sectarian bloodshed to hit the Southeast Asian nation this year.
Truckloads of soldiers could be seen patrolling Meikhtila and taking up positions at intersections and banks as some residents, who had cowered in their homes for days since the mayhem began Wednesday, began wandering their streets to take in the destruction. President Thein Sein imposed a state of emergency in the region on Friday in a bid to stop the violence from spreading.
The unrest, the first of its kind reported in Myanmar since a wave of bloodshed shook western Rakhine state twice last year, underscored the government’s failure to reign in anti-Muslim sentiment in the predominantly Buddhist country, where even leading monks have staged anti-Muslim rallies that critics say have set the stage for further violence.
It was not immediately clear which side bore the brunt of the latest unrest, but terrified Muslims, who make about 30 per cent of Meikhtila’s 100,000 inhabitants, stayed off the streets yesterday as their shops and homes burned and some angry Buddhist residents and monks tried to stop firefighters from dousing the blazes.
Riot police crisscrossed town seizing machetes and hammers from enraged Buddhist mobs. (PTI)
