Myanmar Muslims shelter in monastery after homes destroyed in Buddhist attacks

Hundreds of Buddhists on motorcycles armed with sticks patrol in the streets of in Lashio, northern Shan State, Myanmar, Wednesday, May 29, 2013. Sectarian violence spread to a new region of Myanmar, with a mob burning shops in the northeastern town after unconfirmed rumors spread that a Muslim man had set fire to a Buddhist woman. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe) (The Associated Press)

In this photo released by Daily Eleven Media, people gather around a burning mosque in Lashio, northern Shan State, Myanmar, Tuesday, May 28, 2013. There were no reported fatalities after Tuesday night's rioting in the northeastern town of Lashio, which was sparked by rumors that a Muslim man had set fire to a Buddhist woman, state television reported Wednesday. (AP Photo/Daily Eleven Media) (The Associated Press)

A policeman and an army officer guard a burned mosque in Lashio, northern Shan State, Myanmar, Wednesday, May 29, 2013.Hundreds of Buddhist men on motorcycles waved iron rods and bamboo poles and threw rocks in the northeastern Myanmar town on Wednesday, a day after the mosque and a Muslim orphanage were torched in a new wave of violence targeting the religious minority. (AP Photo/Gemunu Amarasinghe) (The Associated Press)

Some 1,200 Muslims are sheltering in a Buddhist monastery in Myanmar's northeastern town of Lashio, where troops are keeping order after two days of violence that saw one person killed and Muslim properties burned down.

Hari, a Muslim member of the interreligious Conflict Prevention Committee, said some of those sheltering Thursday had lost their homes, and others were just seeking safety.

The rioting began after a Muslim man splashed gasoline on a Buddhist woman and set her on fire. Buddhist mobs responded by burning down several Muslim-owned shops and a mosque and an Islamic orphanage. Roving motorcyclists on Wednesday continued the violence, leaving one person dead and four injured.

Deadly anti-Muslim violence that began last year in western Myanmar has undermined the credibility of reformist President Thein Sein's administration.