Drone strike on Myingyan monastery kills four as Myanmar junta column displaces 10,000 in north Mandalay Region

Mizzima

A targeted drone strike by military junta forces on the Mangyekan Monastery has killed four civilians, including two elderly women and a young girl, while they were sheltering from ongoing regional violence.

The attack occurred at approximately 1 pm on 4 March, in northern Myingyan Township, Mandalay Region, striking a crowd of internally displaced persons (IDPs) who had gathered at the religious site seeking safety.

“The displaced people sheltering at the monastery have nowhere else to go. When the military sees a crowd, they bomb it. Four people were killed, and many others were injured,” a local man told Mizzima.

During the attack, two women in their 70s from Na Bu Aing village, a 35-year-old mother, and her seven-year-old daughter were killed, while four others were seriously injured, according to local residents.

A military column of about 80 troops has been stationed for more than a week in Na Bu Aing village after entering through Nyat Cho Taw village and is currently burning down homes, according to local sources.

“They have been stationed in the village for more than a week. This morning, the army began burning down houses. I can see smoke rising from the village, and all the villagers have fled,” a local man said on March 5.

The junta’s column has forced around 10,000 people to flee from villages in northern Myingyan Township, including Na Bu Aing, Myinthar, and Bone villages, with many reportedly struggling to find drinking water and shelter.