New Delhi: The death toll of civilians from the April 11 airstrike by Myanmar’s military on Pazi Gyi village of the Sagaing region has risen to 175, with The Irrawaddy documenting that in total, as many as 210 people lost their lives in Junta-led air strikes in the country between March 20 and April 18.According to the news site, which has been recording the incidents of air strikes, there were as many as 28 such attacks in mostly civilian areas of Sagaing and Bago regions, and Chin, Kayah, Kachin states. “Each air strike consisted of multiple shootings and bombings,” said The Irrawaddy, adding that the April 11 air strike killed 175 people, including children.“The air strike on Pazi Gyi is the deadliest one conducted so far by the Junta on civilian targets since the military coup. Last October, a Junta air strike on a concert in Hpakant Township of Kachin State killed more than 80 civilians,” the report said. It noted at least six air strikes from March 30 to April 18 in the Chin State in western Myanmar which claimed the lives of 21 civilians and injured another 21.“Southeastern Myanmar’s Kayah State, where the Junta ground troops have suffered heavy casualties, has been hit by regular air strikes and shelling,” the report added.A report released by the United Nations Human Rights Office in March this year had said that the air raids by Myanmar’s military between February 2022 and January 2023 had more than doubled from the year earlier. The report had counted the number of air strikes at 300 from 125 a year earlier. https://news.un.org/en/story/2023/03/1134682This past April, following the Pazi Gyi village air raid, Amnesty International called for an “urgent need” to suspend aviation fuel to Myanmar as the air strikes are wreaking havoc on civilians.“The relentless air attacks across Myanmar highlight the urgent need to suspend the import of aviation fuel. Amnesty reiterates its calls on all states and businesses to stop shipments that may end up in the hands of the Myanmar Air Force. This supply chain fuels violations of international humanitarian law, including war crimes, and it must be disrupted in order to save lives,” said Montse Ferrer, the business and human rights researcher at Amnesty.
