Local residents reported that three buffaloes were killed while no human casualties occurred when the military council forces conducted an unprovoked airstrike using 500-pound bombs near Kwin Gyi village in Hteechaing Township, Sagaing Region. The military council carried out the aerial bombardment around 5 PM on March 8, targeting areas near Kwin Gyi village without any ongoing battles in the area. As the bombs landed outside the village proper, villagers were fortunately spared from injuries or casualties.
The bombing resulted in the destruction of a fuel shop near a road junction by the Kokko tree at the entrance of Kwin Gyi village, killing three buffaloes. One of the buffaloes was found dead hanging in a tree after being thrown by the bomb blast’s impact. Another bomb landed in farmland near an agricultural center between Kwin Gyi village and Pauk Kone village, creating large craters at the impact sites. A villager from Kwin Gyi stated that they were fortunate the bombs did not directly hit the residential areas of the village.
Kwin Gyi village, home to approximately 200 households, has seen most of its residents forced to flee and become internally displaced due to the military council’s airstrikes. Local sources report that the military council deliberately targets civilian areas even without active fighting, resulting in the destruction of lives and property while forcing residents to live in constant fear and anxiety. The military’s indiscriminate attacks on civilian areas have created an atmosphere of terror, compelling villagers to abandon their homes and seek safety elsewhere, disrupting their normal lives and livelihoods.
