Massive unguided bomb used in deadly Myanmar strike is ‘war crime’, Amnesty says
- Latest incident 29 bodies and 56 wounded pulled from debris at a camp for displaced people near the northern town of Laiza, on the border with China
- Rights group says Myanmar military almost certainly used the bomb, which is ‘a weapon completely inappropriate for use in the vicinity of civilians’
Myanmar’s military used a large unguided aerial-delivered bomb in a deadly attack on a camp housing displaced people in the country’s north, Amnesty International said on Friday.
The ruling junta has been accused of carrying out multiple bloody attacks on civilians as it struggles to crush resistance to its 2021 coup.
The latest incident on Monday night saw 29 bodies and 56 wounded pulled from the debris at a camp near the northern town of Laiza, on the border with China, according to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) ethnic rebel group.
An Amnesty International weapons expert analysed photos and videos of the aftermath of the attack that “show evidence of a single massive blast that flattened dozens of nearby buildings – including a church, preschool and many homes – and started fires”.
“The size of the crater and observed damage is consistent with the largest aerial-delivered bombs known to be in the inventory of the Myanmar military,” the rights group said.
“Amnesty International believes the Myanmar military almost certainly used an unguided bomb, which is an inaccurate weapon completely inappropriate for use in the vicinity of civilians.”
