Myanmar military justifies deadly attack on insurgent ceremony

(Reuters) -Myanmar’s military said it carried out a deadly attack on a village gathering organised by its insurgent opponents this week, and if civilians were also killed it was because they were being forced to help “terrorists”.

Up to 100 people, including children, were killed in Tuesday’s air strike in the Sagaing area in northwest Myanmar, according to media reports, making it the deadliest in a recent string of military air attacks.

Myanmar has been in turmoil since a 2021 coup ended a decade of tentative reform that included rule by a civilian government led by Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi. Suu Kyi is serving 33 years in prison for offences that she denied and her party has been disbanded.

Some opponents of military rule have taken up arms, in places joining ethnic minority insurgents, and the military has responded with air strikes and heavy weapons, including in civilian areas.

Russia and China blocked the U.N. Security Council from issuing a British-drafted statement on Wednesday condemning the air strike and calling for accountability, diplomats said.

“There is conflicting information on the circumstances of the attack in question. We need first to have a clear picture,” said Russian Deputy U.N. Ambassador Dmitry Polyanskiy.

A senior Chinese U.N. diplomat said the council should encourage the parties in Myanmar to solve differences through dialogue and reconciliation, but it should refrain from taking sides in the internal affairs of any country.

Britain now plans to raise the air strike behind closed doors in the 15-member council on Thursday, diplomats said. In December, the Security Council adopted its first resolution on Myanmar in 74 years to demand an end to violence and urge the military junta to release all political prisoners.

Weapons storage

Junta spokesman Zaw Min Tun told military broadcast channel Myawaddy late on Tuesday that the attack targeted a ceremony held by the National Unity Government (NUG) – a shadow administration – for their armed People’s Defence Force. He said the attack aimed to restore peace and stability in the region.

“During that opening ceremony, we conducted the attack. PDF members were killed. They are the ones opposing the government of the country, the people of the country,” said Zaw Min Tun.

“According to our ground information we hit the place of their weapons’ storage and that exploded and people died due to that,” he said. Referring to accusations of civilian casualties, he said “some people who were forced to support them probably died as well”.

U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres condemned the air attack and called for those responsible to be held accountable, his spokesperson said on Tuesday, adding that Guterres “reiterates his call for the military to end the campaign of violence against the Myanmar population.”

Citing residents of the region, BBC Burmese, Radio Free Asia (RFA) Burmese, and the Irrawaddy news portal reported between 80 and 100 people, including civilians, had been killed in the attack by the military.

According to a PDF member, who declined to be identified, about 100 bodies – including 16 children – had been cremated, adding: “The exact death toll is still unclear since … body parts are scattered all over the place.”

The military denies accusations it has committed atrocities against civilians and says it is fighting “terrorists” determined to destabilise the country.

The military has ruled Myanmar for most of the past 60 years saying it is the only institution capable of holding the diverse country together.

Suu Kyi is serving 33 years in prison for various offences that she denied and her party has been disbanded.

(Reporting by Reuters Staff; Additional reporting by Michelle Nichols; Writing by Ed Davies; Editing by Tom Hogue, Robert Birsel and Alistair Bell)