At least 49 killed in Myanmar airstrike near market

At least 49 people were killed and 58 others injured in a military airstrike near a market in Myanmar’s Rakhine state.

The strike took place on September 28 in the town of Kyauktaw, where a fighter jet reportedly dropped bombs three times on a market and a nearby bridge, Caliber.Az reports via foreign media.

“There was a heavy airstrike on the market. The fighter jet dropped bombs three times on the market and the bridge,” resident Kyaw Moe told dpa.

Vendors, shoppers and pedestrians were among those killed in the attack, according to local media reports.

Rakhine state, which borders Bangladesh, has been largely cut off from the rest of Myanmar amid the country’s prolonged civil war.

The Myanmar military has increasingly faced accusations of targeting sites not directly linked to military operations. Rights groups and other observers have described such attacks as potential violations of international humanitarian law and possible war crimes.

The United League of Arakan and the Arakan Army, which oppose Myanmar’s military and control the area, said those responsible for the airstrike would face what they called appropriate retaliatory action.

Myanmar has been embroiled in prolonged conflict since the military overthrew the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in early 2021. The military takeover has been followed by widespread violence, economic decline and continued resistance to military rule.

By Sabina Mammadli