Myanmar market airstrike death toll hits 50, aid workers say

The death toll from a military airstrike in Kyauktaw, Rakhine state, Myanmar, rose to 50 with 58 injured, according to local aid workers.

The Arakan Army reported that the airstrike, targeting a busy market, killed innocent civilians like passersby, vendors, and shoppers.

Rakhine's conflict has caused dire conditions with nearly half-a-million displaced, and military airstrikes have been accused of civilian-targeted atrocities potentially constituting war crimes.

KYAUKTAW, Sept 29 — The death toll from a military airstrike in west Myanmar rose to 50 on Tuesday, two local aid workers at the scene said, the day after it struck a busy market.

Witnesses say the military bombed the riverside commercial hub in Kyauktaw town, Rakhine state, around midday (0530 GMT) on Monday, when the initial death toll was reported at around 30.

“The death toll has reached 50, and 58 people were injured,” said aid worker Wai Hun Aung, warning the final fatality figure may be higher because some bodies were lost in fires following the bombing.

A second local volunteer gave the same death toll, requesting anonymity for security reasons.

It has not been possible to contact the Myanmar military for comment on the attack.

The Arakan Army (AA) — a local ethnic rebel force controlling the area — earlier on Tuesday said the number of fatalities reached 49 with 58 more wounded — 22 in critical condition.

Those killed were “innocent passersby, market vendors, shoppers and cargo loaders”, a statement said.

The market and adjacent bridge hit in Monday’s bombardment had become a hive of trading activity since civil war broke out in Myanmar following a 2021 military coup.

Rakhine has suffered some of the direst conditions in the war, largely cut off from the rest of Myanmar, and the market thrived on a river trade route to India, which had become a lifeline.

The AA control almost all of Rakhine, save for a few urban centres still defended by the military wielding a fleet of fighter jets manufactured by Russia and China.

The air wing is also accused of committing atrocities targeting civilians at schools, monasteries and religious festivals — attacks rights groups say may constitute war crimes.

Nearly half-a-million people are living displaced in Rakhine as a result of the conflict, UN data says.

More than 100,000 people have been killed in Myanmar in conflict since the 2021 putsch unseated Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government, according to conflict monitor ACLED. — AFP

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据当地救援人员称，缅甸若开邦皎道市发生的军事空袭造成的死亡人数上升至50人，另有58人受伤。

若开军报告称，此次空袭的目标是一个繁忙的市场，造成无辜平民（如路人、摊贩和购物者）丧生。

若开邦冲突造成了极其恶劣的局面，近 50 万人流离失所，军事空袭被指控犯有针对平民的暴行，可能构成战争罪。

皎道，9月29日——据现场两名当地救援人员周二表示，缅甸西部军事空袭造成的死亡人数上升至50人，此前一天，空袭袭击了一个繁忙的市场。

目击者称，军方于周一中午（格林尼治标准时间 05:30）左右轰炸了若开邦皎道镇的河畔商业中心，当时报告的初步死亡人数约为 30 人。

援助人员 Wai Hun Aung 表示：“死亡人数已达 50 人，另有 58 人受伤。”他警告说，最终的死亡人数可能会更高，因为一些尸体在爆炸后的火灾中被烧毁。

另一名当地志愿者也给出了同样的死亡人数，并出于安全原因要求匿名。

目前尚无法联系到缅甸军方就此次袭击事件发表评论。

控制该地区的当地民族反叛武装若开军（AA）周二早些时候表示，死亡人数已达 49 人，另有 58 人受伤，其中 22 人情况危急。

声明称，遇难者是“无辜的路人、市场摊贩、购物者和货物装卸工”。

周一炮击中受损的市场和附近的桥梁，自 2021 年缅甸发生军事政变后爆发内战以来，一直是交易活动的中心。

若开邦在战争中遭受了最严重的苦难，与缅甸其他地区基本隔绝，市场依靠通往印度的河流贸易路线繁荣发展，这条路线已成为该邦的生命线。

除了少数几个城市中心仍由军队守卫外，若开军几乎控制了整个若开邦，这些军队拥有一支由俄罗斯和中国制造的战斗机队。

该空军部队还被指控在学校、寺庙和宗教节日等地对平民犯下暴行——人权组织称这些袭击可能构成战争罪。

联合国数据显示，由于冲突，若开邦近50万人流离失所。

据冲突监测机构ACLED统计，自2021年政变推翻昂山素季的民选政府以来，缅甸已有超过10万人死于冲突。——法新社

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