By John Q. Hosedrinker 
An airstrike targeting a Buddhist monastery in Myanmar’s Sagaing region resulted in the deaths of at least 23 civilians, including four children, with approximately 30 others injured, some critically. The attack, which occurred around 1 a.m. and involved a jet fighter dropping a bomb on a building within the monastery, took place in a village where over 150 displaced individuals had sought refuge from ongoing conflict. While the military has not yet commented on the incident, opposition groups claim this is a tactic used in attempts to regain control over areas controlled by resistance forces ahead of a planned election later this year. This airstrike is part of a larger conflict, as the military has increasingly utilized such tactics in response to resistance forces since seizing power in 2021.
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At least 23 dead after airstrike on Buddhist monastery in Myanmar. The situation is just horrific, isn’t it? It’s a conflict that seems to be largely ignored, and it’s hard to understand why. Perhaps it’s better that way, with fewer external powers interfering. But when you read about airstrikes on a Buddhist monastery, it’s just a gut punch. It makes you question everything.
The world feels so messed up when you see resources being poured into bombing religious sites. The sheer energy and resources Myanmar is expending on fighting its own people is baffling. You almost wish Myanmar had nuclear weapons just to deter this violence. It’s a headline you never expect to see. The junta probably just said Hamas was hiding there or something, like in a different conflict, where a similar claim was made. The BBC does have reporters who sometimes follow the rebels around, but it seems like other outlets aren’t giving it much coverage.
The rebels have drones, but they’re severely outmatched by airstrikes, and they’re not getting much help from outside, either. I read a comment the other day where someone tried to tell me this wasn’t genocide, as if the deliberate targeting of ethnic groups and the hundreds of thousands of deaths didn’t count. Some people are just impossible to reason with.
It’s interesting how China’s involvement is being viewed. Some sources suggest they’re actually supporting the junta, while also assisting some rebel groups. And, the UN isn’t sanctioning either side of the conflict. It seems like it’s more about protecting their infrastructure, rather than taking a stand. India and Thailand are also continuing to do business with the junta, seemingly content to avoid escalating the war into a proxy conflict. Russia has backed the junta from day one.
There’s also some commentary about how the conflict gets “white country” coverage in Southeast Asia. The reality is, the Burmese Theravada Buddhism is very different from Tibetan Vajrayana Buddhism. Not all Buddhists are peaceful pacifists, either. Just like any religion, Buddhism has its own sects and subgroups.
The claim of China’s involvement is a serious one. The narrative is that China is enacting trade embargoes against rebel groups to force them into tenuous peace treaties. This would allow for the protection of their business and trade interests. Some believe that China is interfering with the internal affairs of other countries. But some people feel like those views are not in sync with the facts. You have to wonder what to believe when there are conflicting claims.
For Myanmar, the civil war has been going on for over three-quarters of a century. The ethnic groups involved have been there for centuries, fighting for their rights against a brutal regime. The proliferation of PDFs (People’s Defense Forces) since the 2021 coup and the junta’s increased conscription efforts show just how bad things have gotten.
There are a number of perspectives on the idea of ethnic cleansing. What exactly are the rebel groups doing? Some people are fearful that Western European countries and former colonies are being taken over by other ethnicities. There are concerns about the preservation of culture and ethnicity.