A government airstrike on a celebration among the Christian Kachin people in Myanmar killed dozens of people, mainly civilians, according to Kachin sources.
The celebration was commemorating the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the Kachin Independence Organization, representing the country’s main Christian minority group. Between 300 and 500 people were in attendance, including several famous Kachin artists, business owners, and resistance officers, a spokesperson for the Kachin Artists Association told the Associated Press. Military aircraft bombed the celebration at around 8 p.m., killing at least 50 people, with the Kachin News Group putting the total at 80 people dead and hundreds wounded, citing locals working with the rescue crews. Resistance groups are denouncing the attack as a war crime and calling for increased sanctions in response.
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The attack has fueled Kachin resentment toward the government, which now says the attack has closed off any chance of negotiations with the junta.
“The hatred felt by the Kachin people for the military has just soared. The revolution will therefore only get stronger. The Kachin people and [Kachin Independence Army] will redouble their efforts in the Spring Revolution to uproot the military dictatorship,” KIO/KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu told the Irrawaddy, adding that the attack had definitively closed any chances of negotiations.
The attack especially came as a shock because the area hadn’t seen any fighting for months.
“There was no fighting that had broken out between us and the military [in the area],” Bu told Myanmar Now. “They bombed the event on purpose knowing that there were many civilians there. This is inhumane and a war crime.”
The bombs landed in the middle of a performance, with one bomb landing near the main stage, killing several performers and the military and business VIPs in the front row instantly, Myanmar Now reported. A source from within the Kachin Baptist Convention told the outlet that many of the victims were civilians and that the death toll may be even higher than current estimates. Several Kachin celebrities were among the dead, including singers, musicians, and possibly an actor.
The Kachin News Group, which is sympathetic to the KIO, says the government is refusing to allow the evacuation and treatment of the wounded, blocking access to hospitals.
Video published on social media by Burmese outlets claims to show the aftermath of the strike, showing devastated wooden structures and debris.
Horrific reports of 60 killed & 200 injured by Burmese military airstrikes on a music festival in Kachin State last night. We are trying to confirm details.
We renew our call for aviation fuel sanctions to try to help stop these attacks.
Footage from WeChat. pic.twitter.com/l8BoX1kAcb
— Burma Campaign UK (@burmacampaignuk) October 24, 2022
Other pictures purporting to be the aftermath of the strikes show dozens of corpses laid in a row.
GRAPHIC: Dozens of dead bodies are seen today after deadly airstrike by #Myanmar military junta in A Nang Pa, Hpakant Township, Kachin State. More than 60 civilians including local singers and KIA soldiers were reportedly killed and over 100 were injured. pic.twitter.com/56HOkH3aqd
— Mratt Kyaw Thu (@mrattkthu) October 24, 2022
Zay Thu Aung, a Myanmar Air Force captain who served in the military for 17 years before defecting, told Myanmar Now that the jets were likely Yak-130s or MIG-29s, as both can carry out nighttime attacks.
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Several opposition groups condemned the attack as an egregious war crime. They are calling on the international community to sanction Burmese aviation fuel, among other measures.
8 organisations are calling for international action in response to the Burmese military airstrikes in Kachin State.
✅Sanction aviation fuel!
✅Sanction gas revenue
✅Deny legitimacy@womenofburma @bloodmoney22222 pic.twitter.com/dRgKcax3UP— Zoya Phan (@zoyaphan) October 24, 2022
Consisting of an estimated 20,000 personnel, according to an analysis by the Wilson Center, the KIA has been one of the most powerful and effective militias fighting the military junta since the country’s February 2021 coup.
