Deadly Airstrikes in Northern Burma Kill, Injure Dozens of Civilians

Villagers gathered to mourn the victims who were killed in a junta airstrike in the Khuafo village, located north of the Chin State town of Thantlang, Burma, on March. 30, 2023. (Free Burma Rangers)

Burmese junta forces fired airstrikes on a village in the country’s northwest on Thursday, killing at least eight civilians, as the military intensified efforts to tackle opposition groups, according to independent news reports.

The Free Burma Rangers (FBR), a multi-ethnic humanitarian service movement, told The Epoch Times by email that eight civilians, including two children, were killed in the attack. Seven villagers were wounded, including a one-year-old child.

The Chin National Army (CNA), an ethnic armed rebel group in Burma (also known as Myanmar), claimed that junta forces dropped four bombs on the Khuafo village, just north of the Chin State town of Thantlang.

“There are concerns that the death toll may rise,” CNA spokesperson Salai Htet Ni was quoted as saying by Myanmar Now.

US Condemns Burma’s Dissolution of Parties

David Eubank, who founded the Free Burma Rangers, described the situation in Burma as “the worst” he has seen in 30 years. The military junta fired over 30 airstrikes against civilians in Karenni State last month, he said.

“I’ve never seen the Burma army come with such speed and force as they have now with Russian aircraft, jet fighters, attack helicopters, armor, multiple launches, rocket systems, and heavy artillery,” he told The Epoch Times.

At least two and a half million people in Burma had been displaced since the military seized control, with internally displaced persons (IDP) camps being the targets of many attacks, Eubank said.

“Almost every hiding place was hit by bombers, not military places, [but] IDP hiding places and also churches and schools, average about once a week,” he added.

He said that junta forces attacked Thantlang town shortly after launching airstrikes on Khuafo but did not elaborate.

One of the houses that were destroyed in an airstrike by the military junta in the Khuafo village, located north of the Chin State town of Thantlang, Burma, on March 30, 2023. (Free Burma Rangers)

Thantlang was among the 37 townships placed under martial law by the junta in February, but ethnic rebels claimed to have seized much of the town.

On Feb. 9, the CNA and its allied groups seized the junta’s police station in Thantlang, killing at least four junta troops and driving out nearly 40 soldiers and police stationed there. The junta has since increased air raids on the town to regain control.

In his speech for the Armed Forces Day on Monday, the junta’s leader, senior general Min Aung Hlaing, vowed that his military would take decisive action against “terrorist groups” that are challenging his rule.

“The terror acts of the NUG [National Unity Government] and its lackey so-called PDFs [People’s Defense Forces] are needed to be tackled for good and all,” he said.

“The [military] and the government also need to take action against this terrorist group, trying to devastate the country and killing people,” the junta leader added.

Villagers gathered to mourn the victims who were killed in a junta airstrike in the Khuafo village, located north of the Chin State town of Thantlang, Burma, on March 30, 2023. (Free Burma Rangers)

US Condemns Burma’s Dissolution of Parties

The military junta on Tuesday dissolved 40 political parties, including the party led by deposed leader Aung San Suu Kyi, for failing to re-register by the deadline. The decision was made ahead of an election that the junta plans to hold later this year.

The United States condemned the junta’s decision to abolish political parties, saying that “any election without the participation of all stakeholders in Burma would not be and cannot be considered free or fair.”

“And given the widespread opposition to military rule, the regime’s unilateral push towards elections likely will escalate instability,” State Department deputy spokesperson Vedant Patel told reporters.

In this photo, provided by the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF), smokes and flames billow from vehicles in Hpruso township, Kayah state, Myanmar, on Dec. 24, 2021. (KNDF via AP)

Burma has been in turmoil since the military overthrew Suu Kyi’s elected government in February 2021, triggering widespread popular opposition. After peaceful demonstrations were put down with lethal force, many opponents of the military rule took up arms, and large parts of the country are now embroiled in conflict.

The pro-democracy resistance that arose allied itself with several ethnic minorities, including the CNA, that have been carrying out an armed struggle for decades seeking greater autonomy. The military has sought to suppress such opposition with air and artillery strikes, with civilians often the victims.

Soldiers stand next to military vehicles as people gather to protest against the military coup, in Yangon, Burma, on Feb. 15, 2021. (Stringer/Reuters)

The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), an exile group that monitors human rights in Burma, said that at least 3,185 people had been killed through military action against the pro-democracy movement since the army takeover.

About 17,067 people have been detained since the military seized control, of which 5,264 are serving sentences. Some 150 people have been sentenced to death, according to the AAPP.

“These are the numbers verified by AAPP. The actual numbers are likely much higher,” the group said on Thursday.

Fifty junta troops raided and set fire to Sone village in Budalin Township, Sagaing region, on March 25, killing seven people, including visually-impaired persons. The AAPP said that 180 houses were burned down.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.