The junta’s military likely used one of its largest aerial-delivered bombs during Monday night’s attack at Mung Lai Hkyet Village in Kachin State, according to an investigation by Amnesty International (AI).
At least 29 people, including 13 children, died at Mung Lai Hkyet Village in Waingmaw Township on Monday night, while 57 were wounded in the attack, according to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA). It said regime troops bombarded the village located about two miles north of Laiza Town—the headquarters of the KIA.
“Amnesty International’s weapons expert analyzed photos and videos of the aftermath of the attack, which show evidence of a single massive blast that flattened dozens of nearby buildings – including a church, preschool and many homes – and started fires,” the rights group said in a statement released on Friday.
It also confirmed reports that the first blast was followed by others, citing survivors of the attack.
The size of the crater and the damage from the first bomb is consistent with the largest aerial-delivered bombs known to be in the inventory of the Myanmar military, AI said. The junta’s military almost certainly used an unguided bomb, which is completely inappropriate for use in the vicinity of civilians, it added.
“This murderous assault by the Myanmar military is further proof of their complete disregard for civilian life,” said Matthew Wells, director of AI’s Crisis Response Program. “The world must wake up to the horror unfolding daily in Myanmar,” he added.
The junta denied responsibility for the attack, saying on Wednesday that a KIA warehouse containing more than 100 tons of ammonium nitrate and weapons exploded.
AI’s report said the bomb fell on a large open field near a road with regular vehicle traffic that was unlikely to be an ammonium nitrate storage area.
The Myanmar military has an extensive history of carrying out indiscriminate attacks similar to Monday’s, including on other camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs).
KIA spokesman Colonel Naw Bu told The Irrawaddy on Wednesday that the KIA would never put a gunpowder warehouse near civilians.
“The [KIA] investigation team found pieces of bombs, and they are examining them,” he said.
Mung Lai Hkyet sheltered more than 600 IDPs before it was obliterated. Survivors have been taking refuge in four shelters near the office of Woichyai IDP camp since the attack. They are in great need of humanitarian assistance, a local aid group said.
In October last year, junta aircraft bombed an outdoor concert at A’Nang Pa Village in Kachin State’s Hpakant Township, killing at least 75 people. The concert was being held to mark the 62nd anniversary of the founding of the KIA’s political wing, the Kachin Independence Organization.
Amnesty International is again calling for the UN Security Council to impose a comprehensive arms embargo on Myanmar and to refer Monday night’s attack to the International Criminal Court so that those responsible can be brought to justice.