Burmese state media say ethnic minority rebels have killed 27 people in two separate attacks on passenger buses.
The official "New Light of Myanmar" newspaper says the rebels killed 10 people, including a Buddhist monk, in Karen state on June 21st. The report says rebels killed another 17 people later in the day, during an ambush in neighboring Kayah state.
The government newspaper said "terrorist insurgents" carried out the attacks, but it did not identify the suspected groups.
Eastern Burma has been the center of ethnic conflict for years. The rebel Karen National Union has been fighting for an independent homeland along the Thai border for nearly six decades.
Thousands of Burmese refugees have fled to Thailand to escape the fighting between the group and forces loyal to the military-run government.
