The last Malaysian adult witness to the massacre of 24 unarmed villagers by British troops in 1948 has died, leaving the campaign for an official investigation uncertain, activists said Sunday.

Tham Yong, 78, who died on Friday, saw 14 Scots Guards kill the villagers in what became known as the "Batang Kali massacre" on December 12, 1948, families representative Quek Ngee Meng told AFP .