Burmese soldiers reportedly burned down five homes in a village in Myanmar before fleeing on boats.

A dozen state troops allegedly attacked Yaelelmaw village in the Wetlet Township of Sagaing region on August 8, a resistance group called the Tiger Army King said. They later escaped through two small boats on the eastern coast of the village.

Footage shows the villagers picking through the smouldering remains of the razed houses. Five homes and two cattle sheds were destroyed before the fire was extinguished at 4:10 pm local time, local media Tachileik News said.

The Burmese junta is believed to employ arson as one of its counterinsurgency tactics.

The Wetlet township is located in the Sagaing region, a known stronghold for anti-junta groups.

Myanmar has suffered ongoing unrest and spiralled towards civil war following the removal of well-liked leader Aung San Suu Kyi in a military coup last February.