Forty people were killed and an unknown number were injured by an airstrike carried out by the Myanmar Air Force on Mohnyin Township of Kachin State, which is located in the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) Brigade 8 territory, on Monday.
“It’s hard to confirm [the death toll] because the internet and phone connections are down,” a source in Mohnyin told DVB on condition of anonymity. He added that the attack occurred without any fighting between regime and KIA forces nearby.
Mohnyin is located 97 miles (156 km) southwest of the Kachin State capital Myitkyina and directly west of Laiza, the KIA headquarters.
The KIA claimed that it and its allied People’s Defence Force (PDF) drove out pro-regime forces, including a local militia, from Lawah village in Hpakant Township on Monday. Hpakant is located 84 miles (135 km) north of Mohnyin and 94 miles (151 km) west of Myitkyina.
Waingmaw Township residents told DVB on Tuesday that pro-regime forces attacked Lamyan village with an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), or drone, but no casualties were reported. Waingmaw is located 127 miles (204 km) northeast of Mohnyin and 30 miles (48 km) east of Myitkyina.
The Kachin Independence Organization (KIO), the political wing of the KIA, has pledged to help communities impacted by the 7.7 magnitude earthquake that struck central Myanmar on Friday.
The KIA captured the regime’s Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 236 on Feb. 20, Tank Battalion 5014 on Feb. 7, Artillery Battalion 366 on Feb. 2, the Bhamo Airport on Jan. 26, and the Armored Battalion 7006 on Jan. 25.
The KIA has seized 14 townships in Kachin, including Mabein in northern Shan State, since it launched its state-wide offensive against pro-regime forces on March 7.
