KATHMANDU: A Nepal-origin couple has been shot dead by Myanmar security forces in the country’s Sagaing region.

Their bodies were found on a nearby roadside on Tuesday morning, according to news agencies.

Among those killed are Nepali-speaking Kisan Gautam and his wife Harimaya Gautam. The couple belonged to the Gurkha community and was engaged in cattle-rearing.

They were reportedly killed in the Myanmar border town of Tamu (Tat Mu) in Sagaing Region in northwest Burma near the border with the eastern Indian state of Manipur.

The couple was preparing to fill a container with milk and sell it in the market when they were shot at. Their bodies were rescued by some social workers and taken to a nearby hospital.

They were cremated on Tuesday afternoon according to Hindu tradition. They had a daughter and two sons. More than 700 people have been killed in anti-military protests in Myanmar.