Dozens of people have been killed by military government airstrikes as they held a concert in Myanmar, rebel groups have claimed.
Ethnic Kachin groups said Myanmar military strikes killed more than 60 people, including singers and musicians, according to the Associated Press.
Hundreds of people had attended an anniversary celebration for the minority group’s main political organization, Kachin Independence (KIO), in a remote mountainous region about 600 miles from the country’s largest city, Yangon.
The KIO is the political wing of the Kachin Independence Army, which has controlled the region and clashed with the Myanmar military for decades.
The Kachin Artists Association claimed that between 300 and 500 people attended the event, and a Kachin singer and keyboardist was among the dead.
Among those killed were also Kachin officers and soldiers, as well as at least 10 Kachin military and business figures seated in front of the scene, he added.
A local politician, who declined to be named for security reasons, said “60 people were killed in the attack” – but that figure has not been independently verified.
As it stands, the death toll at Sunday night’s celebration appears to be the highest in a single airstrike since the military took over in February.
“A ruthless disregard for the lives of civilians”
The UN said it was “deeply concerned” and “saddened” by the reports, adding that early estimates suggest more than 100 civilians may have been affected.
He said the attack appears to be an “excessive and disproportionate use of force by security forces against unarmed civilians”.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the families and friends of all those killed or injured. The UN is asking that the injured receive emergency medical treatment, as needed,” he said in a statement. communicated.
Amnesty International said the “fatal” airstrikes appeared to fit a “pattern of unlawful air attacks” by the military.
Read more:
“Since the putsch, everything is in the dark”
More than 30 dead and bodies burned
Former Myanmar police officers reveal how they were told to shoot protesters
“The military has shown callous disregard for civilian lives in its growing campaign against opponents,” said the organization’s deputy regional director, Hana Young.
“It is hard to believe that the army was unaware of a significant civilian presence at the site of this attack. The army must immediately grant access to doctors and humanitarian aid to those affected by these airstrikes and other civilians in need.”
The incident comes just three days before Southeast Asian foreign ministers are due to meet in Indonesia to discuss rising violence in the country.
Follow the daily podcast on Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker
Myanmar has been ravaged for decades by ethnic minority rebellions seeking autonomy, but anti-government resistance has grown dramatically across the country after an armed pro-democracy movement formed in opposition to the coup. military state last year.
Since the coup against the government of Aung San Suu Kyi in February last year, the military increasingly relied on air power as it struggles to retain control of the country.
