At least 49 people have been killed and 58 others injured—22 critically—following dual airstrikes by the Myanmar Air Force on a crowded public market and bridge in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township on Monday.
Updated casualty figures released by the Arakan Army (AA) and local rescue personnel confirm the strike as the single deadliest military attack on a civilian area in the state since the AA launched its most recent offensive in November 2023.
The strategic bridge links Kyauktaw with Mrauk-U, Minbya, and Myebon townships, forming a vital road corridor across territory captured by the AA during its 2024 offensives.
Local humanitarian worker Wai Hun Aung warned that the fatality count is expected to climb further as rescue teams clear heavy debris from destroyed market stalls and damaged structures.
The Kyauktaw strike surpasses previous major mass-casualty air attacks in the state, including the Dec. 10, 2025 airstrike on a hospital in Mrauk-U Township that killed 33 civilians, and a March 8, 2026 bombardment on an AA detention facility in Ann Township that killed 116.
In a statement issued on Sept. 28, the AA denounced the air raids as part of a desperate campaign against non-military targets, asserting that the regime’s “Operation 4926″—launched on September 4 to reclaim lost territory in Arakan—continues to falter on the ground.
The AA vowed to launch retaliatory strikes against military assets involved in the attack.
To date, the AA controls 14 of Arakan’s 17 townships, alongside Paletwa Township in southern Chin State, while regime forces remain largely confined to Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, and Manaung island.
