The military junta has intensified its brutal airstrikes on civilian targets across Myanmar over the past six days, killing at least 40 people, including children.
The deadly strikes occurred across Chin, Shan, and Karenni States, as well as in Magwe, Sagaing, and Mandalay Regions, reports Irrawaddy.
Among the sites hit were a school, a market, several towns, and an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp. The attacks come shortly after junta leader Min Aung Hlaing vowed to retake areas captured by resistance forces.
Resistance groups and rights bodies are now urging the United Nations, European Union, and Asean to take immediate action, including banning aviation fuel and ammunition exports to Myanmar's military.
On Friday, junta aircraft bombed a school in Lat Yat Ma Village, Magwe Region, killing six people, including a child, and injuring over ten others. The strike also destroyed school buildings and homes, as well as killing livestock. The same day, airstrikes were reported in Mandalay Region's Natogyi township and Chin State's Mindat township.
In northern Shan State, a deadly attack took place at 1:35am on Friday when junta jets dropped bombs on Namkham town, killing 13 civilians, including a pregnant woman and a child. Hours earlier, a camp for displaced persons in southern Shan State's Pekon township was bombed, leaving 10 dead, including eight children.
Just hours earlier, a regime fighter jet bombed an internally displaced persons (IDP) camp in Pekon township, southern Shan State, resulting in the deaths of 10 civilians, including eight children, and injuring 14 others.
The junta’s warplanes also targeted Nanmekon town and nearby villages in Loikaw township, Karenni (Kayah) State, on Wednesday and Thursday. The attacks killed a resident and caused widespread destruction to civilian infrastructure.
Additionally, junta jets also bombed Mantong town and a village in Nawnghkio township, northern Shan State, where ethnic Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA) forces hold control. The strikes killed at least one civilian and damaged multiple homes.
On Sunday, junta aircraft attacked a market in Maung Kone village, located in Tigyaing township, Sagaing Region, which is controlled by People’s Defense Forces (PDFs). The airstrike killed nine civilians, including a child, according to the Tigyaing township People Administration Group.
Revolutionary groups are now calling for the junta to face war crimes charges at the International Criminal Court (ICC) as civilian deaths mount amid relentless aerial bombardments.