According to local resistance forces, military council troops conducted unprovoked airstrikes and artillery attacks on monasteries and villages in Pauk and Myaing Townships of Magway Region, resulting in the death of one civilian and damage to pagodas, monasteries, and residential homes. On the evening of August 12, Artillery Battalion 24 in Pauk Township fired three artillery shells at Monkone village in eastern Pauk Township without any ongoing fighting, killing one female villager.
Later that evening, the military council also attacked a forest monastery located on the border of Pauk and Myaing Townships using fighter jets and military helicopters. While the attack caused damage to monastery buildings and pagodas, no monks or local civilians were injured. On August 11, military forces had also conducted airstrikes on villages in eastern Pauk Township using a Y-12 aircraft, dropping over 50 bombs which killed five civilians including children and injured more than thirty others according to local sources.
Local residents stated that these deliberate attacks by military council forces on areas with no active fighting constitute war crimes against civilians, and the intentional targeting of religious buildings including pagodas and monasteries represents deliberate destruction of religious sites. The brutal attacks by military council forces have caused fear and panic among local residents, forcing many to flee their homes. The ongoing violence demonstrates the military council’s continued use of disproportionate force against civilian targets, causing casualties and displacement of local populations while destroying both civilian infrastructure and religious sites in violation of international humanitarian law.
