Six people were shot dead by security forces during a brutal crackdown on protests against the military coup in the town of Myaing in upper Myanmar’s Magwe Region at around 11:00 a.m. on Thursday.

While the regime’s armed personnel attempted to detain a group of demonstrators, a struggle broke out between them and the protesters. The scuffle was followed by live gunfire, killing six of those present.

“One of the protesters was shot near the groin. Another was shot in the head. The right side of his head was blown apart due to the impact of the bullet,” a protester who witnessed the shootings told Myanmar Now.

All six people killed were men, the oldest of whom was 36 and three of whom were under 30, according to residents who viewed their bodies at a local public hospital’s morgue. Two were from the town of Myaing, and four were from nearby villages.

Protests against the military dictatorship started in Myaing Township in early February, as they did throughout Myanmar. Locals noted that Thursday’s crackdown marked an escalation in security forces’ response tactics, and the first time since the resistance began that they had opened fire on the public.

“In previous days, the police negotiated with the protesters, [asking them] to not go out and protest today,” a Myaing resident told Myanmar Now. “They warned them that they were given the order to shoot. This is the first time there has been a crackdown with shooting in Myaing. They didn’t shoot or arrest anyone in the days prior,” the resident added.

He also said that immediately following Thursday’s fatal shootings, locals had been informed that military trucks were arriving in Myaing from Pakkoku, where Light Infantry Division (LID) 101 is based, along with Light Infantry Battalions (LIBs) 235 and 251.