UN alarmed by reports that Myanmar air strike killed 50
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People walking through smoke and smouldering debris following an air strike on a market and adjacent bridge in Kyauktaw, in Myanmar’s western Rakhine state on Sept 28.
PHOTO: AFP
- The UN condemned a Myanmar military airstrike near the Bangladesh border that killed 50 people and wounded dozens, highlighting ongoing violence in Rakhine state.
- The Arakan Army accused the military of deliberately targeting civilians, while the UN urged an immediate end to violence and protection of civilians.
- The conflict has caused around 100,000 deaths and displaced over 3.5 million; the UN calls for safe humanitarian access and peaceful resolution.
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NEW YORK – The United Nations expressed alarm on Sept 29 at reports that an air strike by the Myanmar military near the country’s border with Bangladesh had killed 50 people and wounded dozens more, many of them critically.
A UN spokesperson said continuing violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine state underscored that conditions did not currently exist for the safe return of refugees and other displaced people to Myanmar.
“This latest air strike brings that reality into sharp focus,” UN spokesperson Stephane Dujarric told a UN briefing in New York.
“The secretary-general strongly condemns the attacks and calls on all parties to end the violence immediately, to protect civilians and comply with their obligations under international law,” he said, citing UN chief Antonio Guterres.
The Sept 28 air strike in Kyauktaw town, which lies on the border with Bangladesh, killed 50 people and wounded at least 58, said the Arakan Army, which is battling Myanmar’s military.
The numbers were confirmed by local aid worker Wai Hun Aung.
Women and children were among the bodies recovered on Sept 28, according to photos shared on social media by Wai Hun Aung.
The Kyauktaw air strike is Rakhine’s deadliest such attack since a December hospital bombing that killed at least 30 people.
Arakan Army spokesperson Khine Thu Kha said the military “deliberately targeted densely populated markets, schools, civilians, and residential buildings through air strikes”.
Wooden coffins lined up inside a shelter on Sept 29, as relatives gather to identify the bodies of their loved ones following the airstrike in Kyauktaw town, Rakhine State, a day earlier.
PHOTO: AFP
A Myanmar government spokesperson did not respond to a request for comment.
The military has previously said it exercises maximum restraint to avoid civilian harm.
Myanmar has been locked in a nationwide civil war since a 2021 coup, with an alliance of armed groups, including the Arakan Army, fighting against the military.
The conflict has since killed around 100,000 people and displaced more than 3.5 million in the impoverished South-east Asian nation.
Malaysia deported around 1,500 Myanmar nationals on Sept 29, in the first phase of a repatriation plan agreed to with Myanmar that Malaysia says is voluntary but has been condemned by rights groups.
A statement from the office of UN Human Rights Chief Volker Turk said the casualty count from the air strike was expected to rise.
“Reports said Monday’s strikes occurred during a busy period when large numbers of civilians were present in and around the market of over 200 shops operated by members of multiple communities, including Rakhine, Rohingya, Hindu, Daingnet, and other groups,” it said.
Khine Thu Kha said the Arakan Army would use all available means to retaliate against the military and anyone involved in the bombing of civilians.
Guterres also urged all parties in the conflict to enable safe, sustained and unimpeded access for the United Nations and other aid workers to deliver humanitarian assistance. REUTERS