13 children die in fire at Myanmar mosque

YANGON, Myanmar — Police in Myanmar said they are investigating the head of a mosque and a Muslim teacher for possible negligence after a predawn fire swept a religious dormitory Tuesday, killing 13 children.

Authorities blamed the fire on an electrical short circuit and deployed riot police to maintain calm. But some Muslims remained suspicious, saying it was set intentionally.

Myanmar has been on edge after sectarian unrest between Buddhists and Muslims erupted in the central city of Meikhtila in March, killing dozens of people and displacing more than 12,000, mostly Muslims.

Police said 71 children lived in the burned compound in eastern Yangon — which encompasses a mosque, a school and a dormitory — and most were able to escape. Security bars blocked most of the building’s windows.

But 16 were sleeping in a small loft at the religious boarding school and were trapped when the stairs to it caught fire. Three boys jumped to safety and the rest died, he said.

Mosque member Soe Myint, who said he helped carry the dead out of the mosque, said he did not believe the fire was caused by a short circuit and urged authorities to launch a thorough investigation. “The whole mosque smelled of diesel,” he said.

Yangon Division Chief Minister Myint Swe told reporters late Tuesday that police discovered a container of diesel fuel underneath a staircase and said it helped fuel the blaze. He said the fuel was normally used to power a generator when the electricity went out.

“This fire .... happened due to carelessness,” Myint Swe said.

Later Tuesday, several thousand mourners gathered at a cemetery on the outskirts of Yangon for a group burial. The charred bodies of the children were wrapped in white cloth before being lowered into the ground as women wept nearby.

City police Chief Win Naing said authorities are investigating the head of the mosque and a teacher. “As the two people in charge, they are responsible for this and we have to take action against them,” he said