CCTV captures Myanmar security forces firing at point-blank range on passing motorcyclists
CCTV footage from Myanmar has emerged showing security forces opening fire at point-blank range on three men who rode past their pick-up truck on a motorbike.
Footage from the city of Dawei shows the bike crashing into a gate and two of the men running off under renewed fire from what appeared to be police officers.
The third man could be seen falling on the ground after being hit, then carried onto one of the security vehicles.
It was later confirmed the third man survived and was being treated in hospital.
Saturday was the deadliest day in Myanmar since the military coup of February 1, with a record number of civilians, including children, killed.
An independent researcher in the city of Yangon put the death toll at 100 by 9pm, with the bloodshed having spread over more than two dozen cities and towns.
Security forces in the south-east Asian nation have been accused of opening fire on armed civilians, killing dozens of innocent people, including children, in a bloody crackdown on the annual armed forces day.
Saturday's death toll surpasses estimates for the previous high on March 14, which ranged from 74 to 90 deaths.
As of Friday, the number of protesters killed since the takeover was 328, said the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, which documents deaths and arrests. This figure does not take into account the deaths which took place on Saturday.
It said its tally only includes verified cases, with the actual number of casualties “likely much higher.” It said eight people were killed on Friday.
Myanmar security forces met renewed anti-coup protests with unsparing violence on Saturday, firing live rounds into crowds across the country and killing scores of people in more than two dozen towns and cities.
While the military celebrated the annual holiday with a parade in the country’s capital, Naypyitaw, people across Myanmar called for bigger demonstrations.
The protesters refer to the holiday by its original name, Resistance Day, which marks the beginning of a revolt against Japanese occupation in World War 2.