The death toll from a devastating military airstrike on a village in Myanmar’s Rakhine State has risen to 20, as more bodies were recovered from the rubble of a local market and residential area.
The attack occurred shortly after 14:00 local time on 24 February, when a junta jet fighter dropped two 500lb bombs on Yo Ngū village in Ponnagyun Township. While initial reports from the Arakan Army (AA) on Tuesday night placed the fatalities at 17, local residents confirmed to the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency (MPA) on Wednesday that three more bodies had been discovered during search and rescue efforts.
“We found more bodies under the debris on Wednesday morning,” a local resident said. “The total number of dead has now reached 20.”
Witnesses and official statements indicate that the victims were predominantly women and children. According to a list released by the AA and verified by local sources, the ages of the deceased range from a seven-year-old child to a 70-year-old woman. Several others remain in critical condition and are receiving emergency medical treatment.
Yo Ngū village, located along the main Sittwe-Yangon highway, has served as a sanctuary for many internally displaced persons (IDPs) fleeing conflict in nearby townships. Local residents have condemned the strike as an “inhumane act” targeting a site known to be crowded with civilians and refugees.
“Most of those killed and injured were simply people buying and selling at the market,” another local resident said. “Market stalls and homes were incinerated. Bombing a civilian-populated area like this is beyond words.”
The Myanmar military has increasingly utilized air power against civilian infrastructure—including schools, hospitals, and religious buildings—as it continues to suffer significant territorial losses to ethnic resistance forces across Rakhine State. Rights organizations have repeatedly warned that such deliberate attacks on non-military targets constitute clear violations of international law.
