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Civilian death toll jumps 7-fold in Myanmar in November

December 8, 2023/in News

The junta turned to more airstrikes as it lost control territory on the ground. The civilian death toll in wartorn states in Myanmar jumped seven-fold in November, largely due to airstrikes by the junta in populated areas as part of fighting with ethnic rebel groups and People’s Defense Force units, data compiled by Radio Free […]

Hundreds flee military arson attacks in Mandalay’s Madaya Township

December 5, 2023/in News

A junta column raids villages more than 10 miles from the site of clashes with resistance forces, causing the number of IDPs to ‘only increase’ Three hundred civilians fled their homes after junta forces carried out a series of raids in northeastern Madaya Township, Mandalay Region, on Monday evening, destroying residences in three villages. The […]

Civilian death toll jumps 7-fold in Myanmar in November

December 8, 2023/in News

Hundreds flee military arson attacks in Mandalay’s Madaya Township

December 5, 2023/in News

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Civilian death toll jumps 7-fold in Myanmar in November

December 8, 2023/in News

The junta turned to more airstrikes as it lost control territory on the ground.

The civilian death toll in wartorn states in Myanmar jumped seven-fold in November, largely due to airstrikes by the junta in populated areas as part of fighting with ethnic rebel groups and People’s Defense Force units, data compiled by Radio Free Asia shows.

As the junta lost control of several areas on the ground over the past month, the military turned to the skies to fight their enemies, especially in Shan, Kayah, Chin and Rakine states and in the Sagaing region.

In total, 196 civilians were killed and 228 were injured in airstrikes in these areas in November, compared with 28 killed and 105 injured in October.

The highest civilian death toll was in Shan State, in the country’s north, where 60 civilians were killed and 44 were injured as Operation 1027, named for Oct. 27, the day it started, intensified there.

“Civilian casualties will increase with escalation of conflict as long as the junta uses airstrikes and heavy weapons,” a spokesman for the Ta’ang Women’s organization, which monitors the military conflict in northern Shan state, told RFA Burmese.

The second-highest death toll occurred in the Sagaing region, where 44 civilians were killed and 21 were injured.

Among the dead was a 22-year-old woman from Ngar Yant Oh village in the region’s Myaung township, who was killed when a bomb from a fighter jet hit her house, a resident there said on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

“We do not know what kind of bomb came from the fighter jet,” the resident said. “She was killed when the bomb dropped near her house.”

The resident said the bombardment on the village occurred even though there was no nearby armed conflict.

ENG_BUR_DeathToll_12072023.2.jpg — Displaced persons take cover from an airstrike by Myanmar junta planes in Karenni state on Nov. 15, 2023. (Karenni Humanitarian Aid Initiative)

Kayah state was third-highest in civilian casualties, with fighting around Loikaw city intensifying since “Operation 11.11”, which started Nov. 11.

The military deliberately targeted civilians there, Aung San Myint, secretary of the Karenni National Progressive Party, told RFA.

“[The junta] regularly conducted artillery attacks and air force bombardments against internally displaced people living in camps in the forests,” he said. “They put pressure on us by targeting civilians. It is their military tactic.”

RFA attempted to contact junta spokesperson Maj. General Zaw Min Tun for comment, but he could not be reached. However, the junta made a press release on Nov. 29 saying that they never targeted civilian areas.

Kyaw Zaw, the spokesperson of the office of the National Unity Government, made up of former lawmakers who were ousted by the 2021 coup and their allies, said the shadow government was collecting data about human rights violations committed by the military.

“Such attacks by the [junta] have proved that they are committing war crimes,” he said. “We have documented these incidents. These documents could be used as evidence for both local court trials and in the international court of justice.”

According to RFA data, the junta has killed 730 civilians and injured 1,292 more in aerial attacks and heavy weapon shelling from January to November 2023.

RFA News

Hundreds flee military arson attacks in Mandalay’s Madaya Township

December 5, 2023/in News

A junta column raids villages more than 10 miles from the site of clashes with resistance forces, causing the number of IDPs to ‘only increase’

Three hundred civilians fled their homes after junta forces carried out a series of raids in northeastern Madaya Township, Mandalay Region, on Monday evening, destroying residences in three villages.

The military column in question first raided the 50-household Hmaw Ni Kone at 4pm, torching eight houses and a building in a monastery compound that held supplies and a vehicle for a local charity group. They also stole five motorbikes from abandoned homes, according to a local man who spoke to Myanmar Now on Tuesday morning.

“I think they came into the village hoping to find anti-junta forces,” he said. “Everyone had to flee in a state of panic and the military ransacked and torched not only the houses but also the car and the garage of the village’s social welfare group.”

Hmaw Ni Kone is located around 12 miles from sites of ongoing battles between resistance forces such as the Mandalay People’s Defence Force (PDF) and the military in eastern Madaya, particularly around the village of Kin, where fighting began in mid-November.

The soldiers who attacked the village proceeded to raid neighbouring Nyaung Bingyi Taw and Kyauk Thalake, setting fire to an unconfirmed number of homes in both communities.

On Sunday morning, the military fired heavy artillery at the Madaya villages of Seik Thar and Shar Say Chet, injuring five civilians, including two children, and killing several livestock. Seik Thar was again shelled on Monday evening, damaging the school, according to locals.

A junta unit stationed in the village of Zee Phyu Kone also fired artillery shells at Wun Su village, west of the Mandalay-Mogok highway, at 10pm on Monday, destroying one house and injuring the couple that lived there, said a woman from Madaya involved in providing support to internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the area.

“The IDPs from Hmaw Ni Kone cannot go back home anymore as the military torched their houses,” she explained. “Our groups, as well as locals, are helping in every way that we can, but it’s difficult as the number of IDPs is only increasing.”

A coalition of resistance forces, including the Madaya and Patheingyi PDFs and Generation Z Power, attacked two junta bases on the Ayeyarwady River in western Madaya in late November, leading to intense clashes. A two-year-old child was killed by a heavy artillery shell during the episode of fighting.

Myanmar Now News

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ND Burma

ND-Burma formed in 2004 in order to provide a way for Burma human rights organizations to collaborate on the human rights documentation process. The 13 ND-Burma member organizations seek to collectively use the truth of what communities in Burma have endured to advocate for justice for victims. ND-Burma trains local organizations in human rights documentation; coordinates members’ input into a common database using Martus, a secure open-source software; and engages in joint-advocacy campaigns.

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