An airstrike on a Buddhist monastery in the central Sagaing region of Myanmar killed at least 23 people who were taking shelter in the compound, sources said on Friday. The overnight aerial attack on the monastery in Lin Ta Lu village, in Sagaing township, injured about 30 others, of whom 10 were in critical condition, according to a member of a resistance group. The resistance member—who spoke on condition of anonymity—told mediapersons that 23 civilians, including four children, were killed after a fighter jet dropped a bomb around 1 am on a building in the village’s monastery, where more than 150 people from nearby villages were taking shelter to avoid fighting in the region in recent weeks.
The death toll could be as high as 30, said Myanmar’s independent Democratic Voice of Burma online media but it could not be verified.
The military did not comment on the incident at the monastery, located about 35 km northwest of Mandalay, Myanmar’s second largest city. The army has said in the past that it only attacks legitimate targets of war, accusing the resistance forces of being terrorists.
Myanmar has been in turmoil since the army seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February 2021, triggering a civil war. The junta quelled peaceful demonstrations with lethal force, after which many opponents of military rule took up arms, and large parts of the country are now embroiled in conflict.
‘Military using airstrikes to counter opposition forces’
The military has increasingly used airstrikes to counter opposition forces, including the armed People’s Defence Forces in Sagaing region, a stronghold of armed resistance, which does not have any effective defence against air attacks.
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The airstrike on monastery comes weeks after hundreds of soldiers launched an offensive with tanks and various aircraft in an area of about 5 km from Lin Ta Lu to regain territories controlled by the resistance groups.
The military regime in Myanmar has been trying to retake areas controlled by the resistance ahead of a planned general election later this year. The poll is widely seen as an attempt to normalise the military’s capture of power through the ballot box and to deliver a result that ensures the generals retain control.
