Myanmar Spring Chronicle – Scenes from March 1
(MoeMaKa), March 2, 2026
More than 20 people were killed in an airstrike on a village in Mindon Township; the Kokang armed group has released 200 prisoners of war.
On the morning of March 1, military aircraft from the junta carried out an airstrike on a village called Pyaung Ywar in Mindon Township, Magway Region. According to media reports, 25 people were killed—23 men and 2 women.
Although the village in Thayet District, Mindon Township, Magway Region, has a population of only շուրջ 1,000, it is located near the border with Rakhine State to the west. It has served as a trading point for goods flowing into Rakhine State, where the military has imposed trade blockades. Some observers infer that the village may have been targeted from the air because it was a busy trading hub.
Since November 2023, after the launch of the Operation 1027 offensive, the military has banned the transportation of goods into Rakhine State, home to millions of people. All transport routes—by water and by land from Ayeyarwady, Bago, and Magway regions—have been blocked. As a result, essential food, household goods, and fuel have been brought into northern Rakhine from the Indian border, while goods have also been transported from eastern Rakhine’s neighboring regions—Magway, Bago, and southern Ayeyarwady—through bribery at checkpoints or via forest routes.
In the latest airstrike, most of those killed were reportedly at a gathering point where vehicles transporting goods to Rakhine State had assembled. It is believed that the high death toll resulted from the junta targeting this crowded trading site from the air.
Although the Arakan Army (AA) controls nearly all of Rakhine State except for Sittwe, Manaung, and Kyaukphyu, and has also seized parts of adjacent areas in Ayeyarwady, Bago, and Magway regions, it faces difficulties in responding effectively to the junta’s “Four Cuts”-style blockade preventing the entry of civilian goods, medicine, and supplies into Rakhine State.
Border trade through the Maungdaw crossing with Bangladesh has faced obstacles, and trade via the Indian border is hindered by geographical and transportation challenges. As a result, residents across the state are forced to purchase goods at prices significantly higher than normal.
The junta’s latest airstrike did not target a military objective but instead killed and injured civilian traders. It can therefore only be concluded that this was a war crime—an attack on civilians aimed at pressuring the AA, which controls Rakhine State.
Due to the junta’s ongoing airstrikes, civilian casualties and the deaths of armed resistance fighters battling the military council are occurring daily. While some reports mention casualties among resistance forces, others go unreported due to security and morale concerns.
Most civilian casualties have been documented and recorded by human rights monitoring groups and research organizations.
In other news today, the Kokang armed group MNDAA has released 200 junta troops captured during Operation 1027. After reaching a ceasefire agreement with the military in early 2025, the Kokang forces returned Lashio in April and have since been releasing prisoners captured during the operation in batches. Media reports say that more than 3,000 prisoners of war have now been released. During Operation 1027, over 4,000 junta troops in total surrendered to the allied forces.
For the junta, the momentum of the Operation 1027 offensive—its use of drone technology, the coordinated attacks by the Three Brotherhood Alliance, support from People’s Defense Forces (PDFs) in central Myanmar, and military successes by ethnic armed organizations in southern Shan State—was so strong that even officers at the brigadier-general level surrendered.
Although recent reports suggest disagreements between the MNDAA and the military over demands such as control of Theinni town and sections of the Union Highway, there are currently no signs of a return to active fighting. The recent release of 200 prisoners of war suggests that the ceasefire agreement remains in effect for now.