Naypyidaw: Two people died and 18 were injured in two explosions in the Sagaing Region of Myanmar, local media reported.
The explosions occurred minutes apart at about 03:30 GMT in the city of Shwebo in Myanmar’s Sagaing Region, Myanmar news outlet Eleven Media reported. The first explosion happened on a bridge across the Chindwin River and the second on a street in the north of the city, the report said.
A 60-year old man and a three-year old child were seriously wounded and died at a hospital, according to the report. Nine men, a 12-year old boy and eight women were injured in the explosions, with five of them in a critical condition, the new outlet said, adding that the boy’s injuries were not life-threatening.
All the victims were local residents who were passing by and accidentally happened to be near explosions, according to the report.
The government said that the explosions were prepared and conducted by terrorists, as Myanmar military authorities often refer to the armed opposition groups.
The military came to power in Myanmar in February 2021. The opposition resorted to armed struggle after a brutal crackdown on peaceful demonstrations by the military regime and the police. Ever since, explosions of improvised devises and land mines planted on roads have become a regular occurrence in some of the regions of the country.
On Monday, the head of Myanmar’s military government said that restoring peace and stability was the main goal of the armed forces and the main prerequisite for transferring power to a civilian government.