Myanmar junta airstrikes target displaced persons in Rakhine State, leaving civilians dead and sparking mass flight

Mizzima

In a coordinated campaign of aerial violence, military junta aircraft launched successive airstrikes targeting camps for internally displaced persons (IDPs) across Ramree and Taungup townships in southern Rakhine State on 1 June, killing at least two civilians and wounding five others.

The first deadly assault occurred at approximately 9:30 pm on 1 June, when two junta fighter jets dropped four heavy bombs directly onto the Kyaung Cha Twin IDP camp in Ramree Township while residents were asleep. The precision bombardment resulted in the immediate deaths of two men, both in their 50s, and left several others clinging to life in critical condition.

A local Ramree resident said, “They dropped bombs using two jet fighters while people were sleeping at night. Since four bombs were dropped, it was a direct hit on the camp, and two elderly men died instantly. Among the injured are also elderly people and women, and their conditions are quite critical.

The nighttime raid followed an earlier aerial offensive conducted at 9:00 am that same morning. The junta deployed four jet fighters and a Y-12 transport aircraft converted for bombing operations to strike displaced shelters in Sar Pyin and Kin Taung villages within Taungup Township.

A local humanitarian relief worker said, “The military targeted areas explicitly known to house vulnerable civilian populations, causing panic and triggering a fresh wave of displacement as families abandoned their remaining belongings to flee into the surrounding jungle.”

Local sources noted that confirming the final casualty toll from the morning strikes remains difficult due to junta aircraft continuously circling the airspace and launching supplementary munitions throughout the day.

The escalating use of airpower against non-combatant enclaves prompted an emergency safety advisory from the United League of Arakan and the Arakan Army (ULA/AA), which urged all citizens across Rakhine State to maintain the highest level of vigilance, construct bomb shelters, and closely monitor local early-warning networks for subsequent air raids as the military commission intensifies its scorched-earth operations.