Myanmar Spring Chronicle – April 14 Overview
published by MoeMaKa on April 15, 2025:
🛑 Airstrikes Intensify Two Weeks After the Earthquake
In the two weeks following the powerful March 28 earthquake, the Myanmar military junta has intensified airstrikes across the country — particularly in regions where active ground fighting is limited or nonexistent.
Daily airstrikes have been reported in:
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Rakhine State
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Chin State
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Northern Sagaing
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Karenni (Kayah) State
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Kayin (Karen) State
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Bago Region
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Mandalay Region
On the afternoon of March 28 — the very day of the earthquake — the military launched airstrikes on villages in Naungcho Township, an area near the quake’s epicenter. In the following days, after the junta lost control of Falam and Htantlang in Chin State to resistance forces, it retaliated with bombings near Wuntho Township in Indaw, killing dozens of civilians.
Around the Thingyan (Water Festival) holidays, the military also carried out airstrikes on towns controlled by the Arakan Army (AA) in Rakhine State, resulting in additional casualties. Other villages in Mandalay’s Singu Township, Depayin Township, and Tantse Township were bombed, damaging monasteries and killing civilians, including monks and children.
🔍 Nature of the Airstrikes
An analysis of the airstrikes suggests:
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Some were retaliatory attacks in response to lost towns or battles.
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Others targeted areas where PDF (People’s Defense Force) troops were believed to be gathering.
However, in many cases, the bombings have caused civilian casualties rather than hitting military targets — destroying homes, killing non-combatants, and terrorizing local populations.
In airstrikes across Sagaing villages, no reports of resistance casualties have emerged — only civilian deaths and injuries, including children.
⚖️ Violation of Ceasefire & Humanitarian Appeals
These attacks directly violate the junta’s own unilateral ceasefire announcement. At a time when millions are still suffering from the earthquake, the international community — including the United Nations — has called for halting attacks to focus on humanitarian aid and reconstruction.
Despite that, the junta has ramped up military aggression instead of prioritizing relief efforts.
Some international governments have begun re-engaging diplomatically with the junta under the pretext of coordinating earthquake relief, allowing the junta to break out of diplomatic isolation. In the coming days, ASEAN leaders, including Malaysia’s Prime Minister (ASEAN Chair), are scheduled to meet junta leader Min Aung Hlaing in Bangkok.
🧩 Diplomatic Gain, Military Escalation
The junta appears to be using the earthquake as an opportunity to gain diplomatic legitimacy, while simultaneously intensifying military operations on the ground. Though international actors urge peace talks, both sides remain entrenched.
Resistance forces, in turn, have no intention of backing down from besieging and attempting to capture junta-controlled cities, even during this period.
The junta’s reliance on airstrikes — especially in retaking lost towns or camps — has not proven effective militarily. Instead, it seems aimed at disrupting the resistance’s ability to hold territory, even if that means inflicting mass harm on civilians.
✈️ Push for Airstrike Restrictions
The NUG and several civil society organizations have been calling for:
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Jet fuel bans
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Bans on sale of military aircraft parts
But nations friendly to the junta — Russia, China, Vietnam, and Belarus — continue to provide access to fuel and parts, undermining sanctions efforts and enabling ongoing airstrikes.
🧱 Rebuilding and Peace Remain Distant
Rebuilding from the massive March 28 earthquake will take years, not months, and must occur amid an active civil war. The dream of a peaceful resolution — or even a meaningful ceasefire — feels increasingly out of reach. For now, “peace” remains just a word, not a reality.