Source: www.barnabasfund.org
Date: March 30, 2021
Myanmar army fighter jets launched air strikes on a Karen village on March 27, killing at least three and injuring eight.
Bombs were dropped on Day Pu No village in the Papun district of Karen state, an area with a large Christian population.
Young girl running
A young girl among the thousands of Karen forced to flee from their homes by military bombardment. [Credit: Karen Women Organization]
A second bombing raid on Sunday, March 28, against villages and a displacement camp in the Mutraw district of Karen forced 3,000 to flee across the border into Thailand.
The attacks are thought to be the most severe in Karen state for 20 years, a result of the ongoing tensions in Buddhist-majority Myanmar since the army, also known as the Tatmadaw, seized power in a military coup on February 1.
The Tatmadaw has for many years persecuted the Karen, among them a significant number of Christians, as well the majority-Christian Chin and Kachin, and majority-Muslim Rohingya people.
On February 1– the same day as the coup – thousands of Karen villagers were forced to flee military bombardment. In March 2020, military jets killed 21 people in a raid on four Chin villages.