29 September :At least 33 civilians have been killed and 36 others injured in an airstrike carried out by Myanmar’s military in Rakhine State in western Myanmar, according to the Arakan Army, which controls much of the region, and local relief workers.
According to a Reuters report, the airstrike was carried out on Monday, 28 September, in an area near a market in the riverside town of Kyauktaw in northern Rakhine. Local sources subsequently confirmed the casualties.
Y Htun Aung, who is in charge of a local relief team, said the airstrike had killed 33 people and injured 36 others. He claimed that the targeted area was located far from the main battlefields of the ongoing conflict and had no direct connection to the armed fighting.
Myanmar has been embroiled in civil conflict since the military seized power in a coup in 2021. Armed resistance against the military subsequently emerged across various parts of the country. In Rakhine State, fighting has also continued between the military and rebel groups, including the Arakan Army.
Myanmar’s government did not immediately comment on the civilian casualties reported in the latest airstrike in Kyauktaw.
The Myanmar military has previously maintained that it exercises maximum restraint during military operations to avoid civilian casualties. However, local observers said the latest incident was among the most serious episodes of civilian deaths in Rakhine State since a deadly airstrike on a hospital in the region last December.
Source: Reuters