14 killed in Myanmar military airstrikes on monastery during Buddhist retreat

At least 14 people were killed in military airstrikes on a monastery in Myanmar’s central Sagaing region on Friday, according to opposition fighters and a local rescue worker cited by the BBC and AFP.

The victims were reportedly elderly civilians who had gathered at the monastery for a meditation retreat marking Buddhist Lent. A number of monks were also injured.

The strikes occurred at around 9:00 a.m. local time in Myaung township, approximately 70 kilometres west of Mandalay. The rescue worker told BBC Burmese that the site was hit twice.

Nway Oo Myaung, a pro-democracy rebel, told AFP that those killed included 11 men and three women, with the victims reportedly aged between 50 and 70. Five were from one village, while the other nine were from a neighbouring township.

An opposition fighter involved in the rescue effort said the aircraft returned to the area and carried out a second strike while rescuers were searching for survivors.

“While we were trying to rescue people, the aircraft came to bomb a second time,” he told AFP.

Myanmar's military has not commented on the reported attack. The country's armed forces have frequently faced accusations of conducting airstrikes against civilian and public sites, while the military maintains that its operations target legitimate military objectives.

The incident comes as Myanmar remains engulfed in a civil war that began after the military overthrew Aung San Suu Kyi’s government in 2021. The conflict has since spread across large parts of the country, with opposition forces and ethnic armed groups fighting the military government.