Myanmar’s military has launched devastating airstrikes on oil field villages in Pauk and Myaing townships, killing civilians and destroying livelihoods. With entire communities displaced, the humanitarian crisis continues to worsen.
BY PC Bureau
In the early hours of March 3, Myanmar’s military carried out multiple airstrikes on several villages in Magway Region’s Pauk and Myaing townships, killing at least 12 people, including a pregnant woman, and injuring more than 30 others, according to local residents and resistance sources. The strikes targeted key locations, including oil fields and residential areas, leaving widespread destruction and forcing villagers to flee their homes in fear of further attacks.
The attacks, which took place between 1:00 am and 2:00 am, targeted Letpanto and Thayetkan villages in Pauk Township—both known for their oil fields—along with five villages in Myaing Township: Bauntbin, Seikchay, Gyokekone, Suwin, and Taw. According to the Anyar Myae resistance coalition, Myanmar’s junta deployed Y-12 transport aircraft and jet fighters to execute eight separate bombing raids.
“Four of the victims were villagers from Baung Bin in Myaing Township, while the rest were oil field workers,” an official from the coalition told Mizzima. The airstrikes devastated multiple locations, including a rice field near Taw Ywar village, a monastery in Nyaung Gone village, and areas near Sate Chay and Gyouk Gone villages. Baung Bin village was struck twice, while a jet fighter also bombed sites near Suwin and Latpanto villages in Pauk Township.
Myanmar junta airstrikes kill 12 civilians near oil field, dozens injured
Myanmar’s military junta launched a series of airstrikes on villages near the Latpanto oil field, situated at the border of Myaing and Pauk townships in Magway Region, killing at least 12 civilians and… pic.twitter.com/I6zMBsC5Pj
— Burma News International (@bnionline1) March 5, 2025
Images released by the resistance coalition depict gruesome scenes of destruction, with bodies bearing amputated limbs and critical injuries. The attacks also caused extensive damage to buildings and essential oil extraction equipment, significantly impacting local livelihoods. In the aftermath, the resistance coalition has been conducting an area clearance operation, working to identify victims and transport the wounded to medical facilities.
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“At the moment, we have been carrying out the area clearance operation, attempting to identify the victims, and transferring the injured to the hospital,” the resistance official stated.
The relentless aerial bombardment has instilled fear among residents, prompting mass evacuations from affected villages. “In fear of further attacks, villagers are temporarily evacuating,” a local resident confirmed. Many have sought shelter in nearby forested areas, unsure when—or if—it will be safe to return home.
This latest wave of attacks follows another brutal airstrike on February 25, when junta forces bombed a wedding ceremony in Song Gone village, also in Myaing Township, killing at least 11 civilians and injuring 20 others. The escalating use of airstrikes by Myanmar’s military has drawn condemnation from human rights organizations, who accuse the junta of targeting civilians to suppress resistance movements in contested territories.
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The resistance coalition continues to warn communities about the ongoing threat of aerial assaults while assisting affected families. As the junta intensifies its military operations, civilians in conflict-affected regions remain in constant fear, facing an ever-growing humanitarian crisis with little relief in sight.
