I was driving with the Free Burma Rangers (FBR), a faith-based frontline aid organization, down one of the few remaining paved roads that had survived years of war. One of the Rangers in the back of the pickup truck began banging on the cab’s ceiling—a signal to pull over. The driver swerved aggressively, quickly steering the vehicle into the jungle. Once under the cover of trees, everyone jumped out and took shelter in a drainage ditch, eyes fixed on the sky. Above us, the faint sound of jets echoed as they crisscrossed over our position. “Before they attack, you’ll hear the pitch change when they dive,” a veteran soldier said. We listened in silence, but the attack never came.
In the Myanmar civil war, every rebel knows that there are no good aircraft. The resistance forces have no planes or helicopters. So, when a plane, helicopter, or drone is heard, people run for cover. The few remaining schools, temples, hospitals, and churches all have bomb shelters nearby, as do the internally displaced people’s camps, which now house about 80% of the population.
Watching the jets, which, at this point of the war are responsible for most of the casualties, it was frustrating to realize that the resistance doesn’t have a single antiaircraft gun or man-portable air-defense system (MANPADS). Government forces can fly overhead with impunity, terrorizing the population and killing at will, without any fear of counterfire.
As the jets got slightly ahead of our position, one of the soldiers shouted: “They just fired rockets.”
Given the trajectory, we assumed the target was about two kilometers down the road. In any other place, in any other war, one of the soldiers would have grabbed a radio or cell phone to call ahead and check for casualties. But after the 2021 coup, the Tatmadaw cut off the internet, cell service, and electricity across the entirety of Karenni State. Thus, the only way to find out what is actually happening is to go there.
We jumped into the truck and rushed to the next village, with the Rangers prepared to provide medical aid. Upon arrival, the local military commander and his soldiers were milling about in the street. Seeing the Free Burma Rangers (FBR) markings on our vehicle, they flagged us down and reported that the Tatmadaw had just blown up a school and a hospital. By the grace of God, neither building was in use, and not a single person had been injured. However, both buildings were completely destroyed.
Across Myanmar, this scenario plays out multiple times per day. The army regularly bombs on internally displaced camps, civilian villages, schools, churches, and hospitals. According to David Eubank, head of Free Burma Rangers (FBR), “At this point every hospital and most churches in Karenni State have been bombed at least once.” Karenni State has a significant Catholic population, and the beautiful churches and cathedrals seem to be a favored target of the government.
We photographed the impact zones to estimate the size of the explosives, and it seemed that a crater of that size could only have been made by a 500-pound bomb. The Rangers quickly filmed a video to inform the world about what had happened. One of the Rangers stood in front of the wreckage and said, “It’s the 13th of February. This is Dharaku Village. It just got hit by an airstrike that targeted a school and a hospital. There’s an impact area about 15 yards away from the school, which destroyed about half of it. And then, about 30 yards down the hill, there’s another impact area.”
We were joking that, after the war, he might have a future as a newscaster, but then we heard the sound of an aircraft in the sky again.
At that moment, a Chinese-made Y-12 aircraft flew overhead. Aircraft identification is one of the many grim skills even civilian children have learned since the coup. These planes are typically used for resupply, but they also serve for surveillance. Fearing we might be spotted and targeted for another attack, the soldiers quickly moved the vehicles off the road. After the plane passed, the local commander politely asked us to leave, concerned that we might be targeted or that having extra soldiers and vehicles in the village could invite further attacks.
As we left, one of the Rangers grabbed a large chunk of shrapnel to use as a kettlebell for exercising back at camp. Even this simple act highlights how nothing goes to waste and how everything is in short supply. There is no local manufacturing, so every product, including petrol and food, has to be transported through jungles, over mountains, and across war zones. The currency has crashed, and shortages of goods and food are fueling severe inflation. The effects are especially harsh for a population where nearly no one has a wage-paying job. For instance, resistance soldiers don’t receive salaries, nor do aid workers—two of the most common jobs in the region.
The area where we were working had been captured by government forces but was liberated in 2022 by resistance forces. Now, it is under the control of the Karenni Nationalities Defense Force (KNDF). The settlements resemble post-apocalyptic ghost towns. Although many homes remain undamaged by bombs, they are uninhabitable because the government planted landmines and booby traps around nearly every building, especially churches. Just before my arrival, a young soldier stepped on a landmine outside a church. As a result, almost the entire population is living in temporary shelters under plastic tarps.
The KNDF Chairman, Khun Bedu, is working diligently with the Interim Executive Council (IEC) to establish and implement a civilian government. Various departments, such as health and education, are already operating, staffed by civilians who provide what aid they can to the people. However, because of the airstrikes, there is no way to return to normalcy. No matter what physical infrastructure or societal institutions the IEC builds, a government airstrike can come at any moment and destroy everything.
Just outside of town, government forces attempted to retake territory lost in 2022. Initially, the resistance was overrun, but the next day they launched a successful counterattack. They quickly regained ground, but chose to hold their position because they were running low on ammunition and knew they couldn’t maintain additional ground if they advanced. A battalion commander pointed out that airstrikes on civilian targets are sporadic, but if the KNDF takes too much land or gets too close to government bases, all bets are off, and the government could unleash a full-scale bombing campaign. The resistance would have no way of countering it. As a result, the war has ground to a strange stalemate.
Not just in Karenni State, but in most of the states actively fighting against the junta, the ethnic resistance armies have captured all but the largest cities. The capital of Karenni State, Loikaw, is largely under government control, and the same is true for Karen State’s capital, Hpa-An, and Shan State’s capital, Taunggyi. In Kachin State, the capital, Myitkyina, and in Arakan State, the capital, Sittwe, are nearly, but not entirely, under resistance control. However, in areas like Karenni, Arakan, and Kachin, the vast majority of the population now lives under the governance of ethnic resistance forces, rather than the Tatmadaw.
One of the most practical differences between government-controlled and ethnic-controlled areas is the use of native languages as the medium of education in schools, where they still exist. Education often takes place in dry riverbeds under camouflaged tarps hidden in the jungle, taught by volunteer educators with few, if any, resources. Despite the hardships, their commitment to building a functioning civil society in the midst of a David vs. Goliath struggle is remarkable. Sadly, until the issue of airstrikes is resolved, this smoldering conflict will never end, and the people will never be able to reclaim their lives, nor will civilian governments be able to govern.
To end the airstrikes and bring about a resolution, Myanmar needs: 1) The United States and other Western powers to prevent China and Russia from selling aircraft, munitions, and fuel to the junta; 2) Civilian governments established in places like Karenni State to receive international recognition, as well as diplomatic support and aid; 3) The international community to persuade the Thai government to open humanitarian corridors, allowing truckloads of medicine, food, and other supplies to cross the border freely; and 4) Resistance forces to receive US military aid, munitions, small weapons, and especially man-portable air-defense systems (MANPADS), along with sophisticated drone jammers.
While many in the United States and the West are concerned about providing weapons to a country in conflict, ending the war sooner – ending the airstrikes – will save more lives in the long run.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author(s) alone and do not necessarily reflect those of Geopoliticalmonitor.com.
