Myanmar airstrikes kill 11 civilians in Chin State

Mizzima

A series of air raids by Myanmar’s military junta has left at least 11 civilians dead in southern Chin State, underscoring the escalating toll of the conflict on ordinary people.

According to the Chin People’s Union/Army (CPU/CPA), fighter jets struck the Kyin Dway Bridge in Kanpetlet Township on 29 and 30 April. The bridge, a vital civilian trade route, was being repaired when the attacks hit. Nine residents were killed in the first strike, followed by two more fatalities the next day. Heavy machinery and vehicles were also destroyed.

The junta has claimed the bridge was a military target, but the CPU/CPA insists the victims were unarmed civilians engaged in essential infrastructure work. Observers say the strikes reflect a tactical shift aimed at severing supply lines and isolating resistance-held areas.

The bombardments come just days after junta forces captured Falam town and deployed artillery units nearby, signalling intensified efforts to regain control of Chin and Yaw regions.

The attacks highlight the growing reliance on air power as the junta struggles to reassert authority in territories lost to ethnic armed groups. For residents, the threat from above has become the most pressing danger. The Chin People’s Union has urged communities to build bomb shelters at homes and workplaces, warning that airstrikes are now the primary risk to civilian life.

The violence in Chin State is part of a broader pattern of escalating military operations across Myanmar, where the junta faces mounting resistance more than five years after seizing power. With infrastructure destroyed and civilians killed, the strikes on Kyin Dway Bridge illustrate the fragility of grassroots communities caught in the crossfire of a conflict that shows no sign of abating.

-2026-05-05