At least 133 people were killed, including women and children, in an airstrike by the military Junta on a village in Central Myanmar, citing Aung Myo Min, the human rights minister of the deposed shadow National Unity Government, according to a report.
The attack, which occurred on Tuesday in Kanbalu township in the country’s central Sagaing region, is considered one of the deadliest since the junta seized power in a coup two years ago. According to CNN, 50 people were injured during the strike, according to the Kyunhla activist group, which was present. At least 20 children were slaughtered.
Although no additional strikes have occurred, military jets have continued to fly over the town, preventing first responders and medical professionals from reaching the attack site, according to CNN’s Aung Myo Min.
The Sagaing region, near Mandalay, the country’s second-largest city, has seen some of the fiercest resistance to military rule, with months of fighting.
In response to the incident, UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said on Tuesday that he was “horrified” by the deadly air strikes, which he said killed schoolchildren performing dances, and that those responsible should be brought to justice.
Photos shared on social media from the village showed more than a dozen burned and mutilated bodies, while videos showed a destroyed building, burned motorcycles, and debris scattered across a large area. Rescuers on the scene confirmed the images’ authenticity to The New York Times.
The apparent target of the attack was a celebration marking the opening of an administration office for the local resistance movement. A video and photos showed that only the charred frame of the building remained standing after the air raid.
Myanmar’s military, which has fought armed ethnic groups for territorial control since shortly after the country’s independence in 1948, has a long history of atrocities against civilians.
