A pregnant woman and a displaced civilian have been killed following a series of military airstrikes in Kawlin Township, Sagaing Region, local sources reported.
The attack occurred at approximately 16:40 local time on 5 March, when military jet fighters targeted the villages of Kachin Kone and Shauk Pin Kone in eastern Kawlin. Both villages are situated along the strategic Shwebo-Myitkyina highway.
One of the victims, a pregnant market vendor from Kachin Kone, died from severe injuries while being transported to a hospital. The second victim was a woman who had been seeking refuge at a monastery in Shauk Pin Kone village to escape the conflict; she reportedly died instantly at the scene.
“A bomb was dropped on Kachin Kone, and two others targeted the monastery in Shauk Pin Kone,” a military source in Kawlin told the Myanmar Pressphoto Agency (MPA). “Two men were also injured, though details remain limited. There was no active military engagement in these villages; they were targeted without provocation”.
The strikes caused significant structural damage, destroying four homes in Kachin Kone and several buildings within the monastery grounds in Shauk Pin Kone.
The humanitarian situation in Kawlin remains dire. Since the beginning of February, approximately 10,000 residents from 14 villages have been forced to flee their homes due to advancing military columns and ongoing aerial operations.
The Myanmar military has increasingly relied on airpower to combat resistance forces and intimidate civilian populations in Sagaing, a region that has become a stronghold for anti-coup forces since the 2021 military takeover.
