The Marble 'Living Buddhas' Trapped By Myanmar's Civil War

Moving marble across areas divided by Myanmar's civil war has become an expensive, difficult and dangerous mission, leaving artisans without raw material (Credit: AFP)

Sculptor Aung Naing Lin has spent decades carving Buddha statues to help guide Myanmar's faithful -- but getting the marble he needs from rebel-held quarries in the midst of civil war is now a perilous task.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has been mired in bloody conflict since the military toppled the government of Aung San Suu Kyi in 2021, terminating a 10-year experiment with democracy and sparking a widespread armed uprising.