At least 170 fatalities reported as Myanmar junta conducts air strike on village

The death toll of the air strike on a village in central Myanmar has risen to an estimated 171 victims, according to a team member involved in cremating the bodies and media reports.

The country has been in crisis since the military coup in February 2021, with an estimated 3,200 civilians killed as part of the junta’s crackdown on dissent.

There is no official death toll from the strike in Pazi Gyi village in the central Sagaing region, although military authorities confirmed they had carried out an operation in the area.

The attack drew international outrage, with the United Kingdom calling for the United Nations Security Council to meet to discuss the incident.

The Sagaing region is a rebel stronghold near Mandalay. The junta confirmed on Wednesday it had launched “limited” air strikes in the area and blamed some of the deaths on mines planted by anti-junta fighters.

They also said rebels had dropped bombs from a drone that killed eight people, including five children, and wounded 31 others at Kywe Pon village.

Myanmar’s National Unity Government, a shadow body dominated by former lawmakers from Aung San Suu Kyi’s party, has tweeted a chart on Friday with a total of 168 fatalities.