Regime Kills 60 People During Concert Bombing In Hpakant
By Network Media Group
Wednesday, October 26, 2022
Burma Army (BA) jet fighters killed at least 60 people during a bombing attack on a music concert marking the 62nd anniversary of the Kachin Independence Organisation (KIO) in the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) Brigade 9 area in Hpakant Township.
“I heard that many people were killed in the air strike because the shells struck a crowded place,” said a woman who spoke to NMG on condition of anonymity. She was told that it was difficult to identify some of the bodies because they were blown to pieces by the three bombs dropped at 8:30pm on 23 October on A Nang Pa in Kachin State, where at least 40 people were injured.
Among the dead were the famous Kachin singer Aurali, other musicians and artists, high-ranking KIA/KIO officials, regular soldiers and businessmen. According to the Kachin News Group, at least nine prominent Kachin artists attended the event, which took place in an area controlled by KIA Battalion 6.
KIO spokesperson Col Naw Bu said there were many injured in the attack who’re in critical condition, but regime forces are blocking all entrances and exits from Hpakant, hampering rescue efforts and preventing the KIO from determining the number of dead. “This is a heinous attack. They knew how many civilians were gathered there and still bombed the area,” he told NMG, calling it a war crime.
Political analyst Than Soe Naing called it “terrorism” because civilians were killed in a busy area where there was no fighting.
To commemorate the victims of the bombing, the KIO/KIA flag flew at half mast in the areas it controls in Kachin State.
Since last year’s coup, the junta has frequently bombed military and civilian sites in Hpakant Township with fighter jets and artillery. The regime has also suspended connectivity in the township, making it difficult to get information about what’s happening in the township.
