Myanmar Junta Torches Church and Homes in Bhamo as Kachin State Clashes Intensify

The KBC church in Bhamo destroyed by the junta’s arson attack.

Myanmar military troops have torched a Christian church belonging to the Kachin Baptist Convention (KBC) and surrounding homes in downtown Bhamo, Kachin State, as fighting against the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) escalates.

According to local sources, regime troops from Light Infantry Divisions (LIDs) 33 and 88, stationed in Bhamo Township's 3-Mile village, deliberately set fire to the KBC church and residential buildings at approximately 3:30 p.m. on October 12.

"The junta deliberately burned down the KBC church and locals’ homes. We don’t know exactly how many houses were destroyed. We still can’t go there to assess the damage because regime troops remain in the area," a local source in Bhamo Township said.

Meanwhile, a military convoy of about 130 vehicles carrying weapons and ammunition from Mandalay began arriving in the Kachin State capital, Myitkyina, on the evening of October 12, with roughly 80 vehicles offloading reinforcements and military supplies.

Combat has also intensified amid large-scale regime offensives in Kachin State’s Shwegu Township and along the Momeik (Mongmit)–Mabein Road in northern Shan State, during which the KIA and allied resistance groups seized weapons and ammunition from junta forces.

Relentless airstrikes, artillery barrages, and ground offensives have forced the KIA to close the Shwegu–Ngaroe highway, prompting warnings for civilians to exercise extreme caution and use only designated safe routes.

In addition to assaults in Kachin State, the military regime has targeted religious sites in other regions, including Chin State. On October 9 at approximately 2:30 p.m., a regime fighter jet dropped a 500-pound bomb inside the compound of a Christian church in downtown Mindat, Chin State.

Since the military coup, Christian places of worship across Chin, Kachin, Karenni, and Karen states have been repeatedly targeted by regime attacks. On October 12, the Burma Research Institute (BRI) urged the U.S. government to formally classify the junta’s actions as war crimes and crimes against humanity.