13 April 2023 03:13 am
The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights says he is “horrified” by the strikes in central Myanmar that have killed as many as 100 people. Among the dead are school children who were performing dances.
Dozens of people in central Myanmar were killed in air strikes Tuesday, according to local media reports and a witness contacted by AFP, as the United Nations and Western powers condemned the attacks and demanded accountability. The Southeast Asian country has been in chaos and its economy in tatters since the military seized power in February 2021 coup.
UN rights chief Volker Turk said he was “horrified” by the deadly air strikes whose victims he said included schoolchildren performing dances, with the global body calling for those responsible to be brought to justice.
The United Nations, while not confirming a toll, said several civilians were killed, with Turk accusing Myanmar’s military of once again disregarding “clear legal obligations... to protect civilians in the conduct of hostilities”.
UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres «strongly condemns the attack by the Myanmar Armed Forces today,» according to a statement by his spokesman Stephane Dujarric. Guterres «reiterates his call for the military to end the campaign of violence against the Myanmar population throughout the country,» the spokesman added.
AFP.com,
12 April, 2023