By Ra Wai / MPA
A midnight airstrike by Myanmar’s military junta on a gemstone mining area in western Mogoke, Mandalay Region, killed five civilians and injured 19 others, according to reports.
Junta aircraft dropped nearly 30 bombs on the Win Hta Yan gemstone mining site in western Mogoke between midnight and 12:30 a.m. on Monday, destroying seven houses, according to a source close to the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA).
A local source told MPA, “Both miners and their families live there. On Monday morning, we heard that three people had been killed. Later, by 10:30 a.m., the death toll had risen to five.”
The Win Hta Yan mining site lies between Ka Thea Kyauk Saung Village and Pyaung Pyin Village in western Mogoke.
The TNLA, which governs Mogoke, has announced plans to release further details on the damage caused by the airstrike.
The military previously carried out an airstrike on eastern Mogoke on January 8, targeting a golf course and the Ma Soe Yein Monastery. According to the TNLA, that attack damaged a monastery, five houses, and a car.
Since securing control of Mogoke on July 24, 2024, the TNLA and its allies have been working on reconstruction and administrative efforts in the region
Editor – ML
