Myanmar military accused of airstrikes as nation grapples with devastating quakes

An armed resistance group in Myanmar accused the junta on Sunday of launching airstrikes on villages across the country. The attacks came as the Southeast Asian nation struggled with back-to-back earthquakes that have left around 1,700 dead.

The Karen Union, one of Myanmar's oldest ethnic outfits, said in a statement that the junta "continues to carry out airstrikes targeting civilian areas, even as the population suffers tremendously from the earthquakes".

The group said that under normal circumstances, the military would be prioritising relief efforts, but instead was focused on "deploying forces to attack its people".

A spokesperson for the junta did not reply to queries about the criticism.

Myanmar has been in civil war with multiple armed opposition groups since a 2021 coup, when the military seized power from the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi.

Shortly after Friday's earthquake, military jets launched airstrikes and drone attacks in Karen state, near the KNU headquarters, according to the Free Burma Rangers, a relief organisation.

The epicentre of the 7.7-magnitude quake - near the cities of Mandalay and Sagaing - was in an area held by junta forces, but the devastation has affected some territory held by armed resistance movements. Several aftershocks have continued to rattle the region.

On Sunday, the opposition Unity Government, which includes remnants of the government ousted in 2021, said anti-junta militias under its command would pause all offensive military action for two weeks.

Richard Horsey, the senior Myanmar adviser at Crisis Group, said some anti-junta forces have halted their offensives, but fighting continued elsewhere.

"The regime also continues to launch airstrikes, including in affected areas. That needs to stop," he was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters in its report.

He added that the regime was not providing much visible support in the earthquake-hit areas.

"Local fire brigades, ambulance crews, and community organisations have mobilised, but the military - who would normally be mobilised to support in such a crisis - are nowhere to be seen," Horsey said.

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