Wednesday’s air attack by the Burmese Army against civilians in a rebel area in the north of the country has left at least 168 dead, according to a new assessment by the Government of National Unity of Burma, loyal to the once ‘de facto leader’, Aung San Suu Kyi.
According to his information, among the dead there are at least 40 children, the youngest being a six-month-old baby, has also confirmed the permanent representative of Burma to the UN, who has also appealed to the international community and the UN Security Council to »take decisive action to save the lives of the people of Burma and end military impunity».
The opposition organization has assured that the volunteers are still working to count and identify the dead, so they expect the death toll to increase in the coming days.
The Burma Air Force dropped two bombs on Wednesday in the village of Pazigyi, in Sagaing. A spokesman for the military junta, Zaw Min tun, later confirmed that the attack was directed against terrorists of the People’s Defense Forces (PDF) who were participating in a ceremony, claiming that they were people belonging to the group even though they were dressed as civilians.
UN Secretary General António Guterres condemned the attack, as did the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), calling in a statement for an »immediate end to all forms of violence, especially the use of force against civilians».
The military junta at the head of the Burmese government has hardened repression during this time and has accumulated more than 21,300 detainees, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners of Burma (AAPP). Since the coup, more than 3,200 people have been killed by forces loyal to the current authorities.
Source: (EUROPA PRESS)
