At least 20 people, including children, were killed and dozens more injured when Myanmar's military used a motorised paraglider to drop bombs on a village in the Sagaing region. The attack occurred on Monday during a sit-in protest against the junta, coinciding with the Thadingyut festival, the country's largest Buddhist holiday.
Witnesses reported body parts scattered across the scene in Chaung U, a village that has been a key battleground since the military seized power in 2021. Residents said it was difficult to distinguish civilians from anti-junta fighters among the casualties. The paraglider, a low-tech and inexpensive weapon, returned later the same evening to drop more explosives.
Footage of the aftermath circulated on social media, showing desperate attempts to help the wounded and locate missing loved ones. Amnesty International condemned the attack, with researcher Joe Freeman stating that the international community's reduced scrutiny has allowed the military to commit war crimes with impunity. The junta has not acknowledged the strike.
The conflict in Myanmar has escalated since the February 2021 coup that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi. Armed opposition groups now control much of the country, including Chaung U. The junta has announced elections for December 28, but a UN expert dismissed the plan as a “fraud”, and anti-junta groups are either barred from participating or refuse to do so.
Last month, UN investigators reported that the “frequency and brutality” of atrocities in Myanmar continue to escalate, with evidence of systematic torture in prisons, including beatings, electric shocks, and sexual violence.
