Attack on a convoy

Five people, including a Red Cross volunteer, were wounded in an attack on a convoy near the Myanmar-China border where battles have raged between government soldiers and ethnic insurgents.

Moe Kyaw Than, 45, a volunteer with the Myanmar Red Cross Society was shot when the convoy was fired upon despite bearing Red Cross logos. The government blamed rebel group the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army, which denied involvement.

"I had to keep reminding the driver not to drive too fast and to not be afraid."
Soe Zeya Tun, Reuters Photographer

A small convoy left Laukkai, the capital of Kokang Self-Administration Zone, after picking up about 200 people displaced by fighting along the Myanmar-China border.

They had been trapped since fighting started on February 9, between the Myanmar military and a rebel group called the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army.

The Myanmar Red Cross Society organised a mission to pick up some of them and I went as a photographer in a convoy of trucks, cars and a few motorbikes. The trucks and cars were emblazoned with Red Cross logos.

On the way back, after about an hour’s drive, we suddenly heard sounds of gunfire. It sounded like it was coming from miles away but the convoy stopped and waited. When the sound stopped about 30 minutes later, the convoy leader decided to proceed with the journey.

Within a few minutes, shots were fired again and I saw bullets hitting the road and rounds exploding in a valley bellow us. We were shocked because the Red Cross logos could clearly be seen.

The car at the front stopped. So did we. We got out of the car and took cover in a drain nearby. Some were hiding in the cars.

That's when we heard that a volunteer - Moe Kyaw Than - and a driver had been wounded.

When I went over to take some pictures, Moe Kyaw Than asked for help.

I was wearing a bulletproof jacket and another photographer also had protection, so we put our cameras on the ground and carried him to safety.

A few others then helped to get him into the vehicle.

The shooting stopped after a couple minutes but we kept hiding, because we didn't know if they would start shooting again. After about half an hour we decided to leave the place.

Moe Kyaw Than was moaning in pain. From time to time, he would whisper about how much it hurts. There was blood on his grey shirt and the Red Cross apron.

The wounded man was in the same car as me so I shot some more pictures while we drove away.

Luckily, I had hostile environment training and I remember the trainer telling me that more journalists are killed by car crashes than bullets during wars. So I had to keep reminding the driver not to drive too fast and to not be afraid.

When we arrived in the town of Lashio Moe Kyaw Than was taken to the hospital, where he is being treated for his injuries.

Camera: 5D Mark III, f2.2, 1/320, ISO: 1000