By Kantarawaddy Times
The Myanmar military council has shifted from its previously indiscriminate approach to more coordinated and systematic airstrikes involving both military and civilian targets, according to U Banya, Secretary (2) of the Karenni Interim Executive Council (IEC).
“The operations are now clearly based on coordinated command systems, with orders being executed according to structured chains of command and informed by aerial reconnaissance and intelligence from the ground. From what we can tell, these operations are expected to continue consistently over the next two to three months,” U Banya said.
While the junta has long targeted schools and IDP camps with airstrikes, in 2025, it has increasingly focused on economically strategic areas and locations with significant civilian movement, he added.
According to the IEC, junta airstrikes in Karenni State injured 29 civilians during the month of April The military also carried out a total of five airstrikes on the Mawchi area, where mining operations are currently underway—once in March, twice in April, and twice so far in May.
“Targeting the Mawchi area appears to be a deliberate attempt to disrupt the local economy,” U Banya stated.
He further noted that, from a nationwide perspective, the military has increasingly targeted areas associated with the administrative structures of ethnic armed organizations and resistance forces, along with locations providing public services and key socio-economic centers.
