Over 40,000 survivors living outdoors one month after earthquake
Nearly 200,000 people have been displaced from their homes and 42,000 are living in tents and makeshift shelters one month after Burma’s 7.7 magnitude earthquake, according to Save the Children. Seismic activity continues to prevent residents from returning to their homes. The regime Department of Meteorology and Hydrology has documented 156 aftershocks as of Saturday.
“Communities are also concerned about how they will repair important buildings, including schools, ahead of the annual monsoon or rainy season,” said Jeremy Stoner, the interim Asia regional director at Save the Children. The U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) stated that it aims to reach 1.1 million people in the regions hardest-hit by the quake before the rainy season arrives.
The regime in Naypyidaw has calculated that 48,834 houses, 2,045 schools, and 2,171 offices and buildings were destroyed by the earthquake. Residents of Mandalay, Sagaing and Naypyidaw told DVB that the high costs of rubble clearance and demolition of destroyed buildings hinder recovery and restoration efforts. The death toll is 4,456 with 11,366 injured, according to DVB data.
Regime continues attacks after ceasefire extension
The U.N. reported that 105 people have been killed in 207 regime attacks. This included 140 airstrikes with 73 being carried out on earthquake survivors in Sagaing, Mandalay, Magway, Bago, Naypyidaw and southern Shan State. It added that 172 attacks occurred after a ceasefire was announced on April 2, which was extended on Tuesday to April 30.
“The ceasefire…[April 2-30] should have involved stopping all military activity and repurposing your military to support the humanitarian response and that has not happened,” James Rodehaver, the chief of the Burma team at the U.N. Office for the High Commissioner of Human Rights (OHCHR), told Reuters.
The Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED) documented an average of 9.7 aerial or drone strikes per day from April 2-18, up from 7.6 in the six months prior to the ceasefire. It added that resistance forces have conducted only three drone strikes on regime forces during the same period. DVB data states that 286 regime attacks have been carried out since April 2.
Officials flee township in Ayeyarwady Region
Residents of Lemyethna Township in Ayeyarwady Region told DVB that regime staff have abandoned their homes and sought refuge in Hinthada Township due to fighting between regime forces and the Arakan Army (AA) in Pandawgyi village April 15-18. Lemyethna and Hinthada are located 75-86 miles (120-138 km) north of the region’s capital Pathein.
A source close to the Lemyethna administration told DVB on the condition of anonymity that the regime instructed its officials in towns unaffected by the fighting to continue administrative operations. Another source close to the military told DVB on the condition of anonymity that regime forces have withdrawn from Pandawgyi village and are now preparing for the defence of Lemyethna.
An airstrike was carried out on Lemyethna on April 17 but no casualties were reported by residents. The AA controls 14 out of 17 townships in Arakan State, as well as Paletwa Township in southern Chinland. It expanded its offensive into neighbouring Ayeyarwady, Bago and Magway regions in December.
News by Region
ARAKAN—The Humanitarian Development Cooperation Office (HDCO) under the AA claimed that one civilian was killed and 28 were injured by 409 attacks on Kyaukphyu, Taungup, Kyauktaw, Sittwe and Pauktaw townships from April 2-22. It called the attacks “a clear and deliberate violation of international humanitarian law.”
The AA added that 21 homes, two shops and one religious building were damaged. It, and the Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and the Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA)-known collectively as the Brotherhood Alliance-announced a ceasefire until April 30.
SHAN—The Shan State Progress Party/Shan State Army (SSPP/SSA) marked the 61st anniversary of its founding with a ceremony at its headquarters in Wan Hai, Kyethi Township, located 160 miles (257 km) northeast of the state capital Taunggyi, on April 24.
“I urge unity among our people and unity among our armed forces,” said Han Hkam, the SSPP/SSA colonel, SHAN news reported. In May 2024, the SSPP/SSA announced that “political dialogue with the regime can no longer deliver a genuine federal democratic union.”
SAGAING—Residents of Tabayin Township told DVB that five civilians were killed, seven were injured, and two homes were destroyed by an airstrike on Lethluktaung village on Wednesday. Tabayin is located 40 miles (64 km) north of the region’s capital Monywa.
“The military is trying to instill fear among the people in Sagaing Region by targeting innocent civilians,” a Tabayin resident told DVB on the condition of anonymity. The PDF claimed that the Burma Air Force bombed a clinic in the village, which is 18 miles southeast of Tabayin town.
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