Horror as 14 elderly people killed in double military strike on monastery

Fourteen elderly people have been killed in air strikes on a monastery in Myanmar where civilians had gathered for a meditation retreat, according to opposition fighters and a local rescue worker.

The site in Myaung township, in the central Sagaing region, was reportedly hit twice during the attack early on Friday.

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A local rescue worker told BBC Burmese that all 14 people killed were elderly and that several monks were also injured.

The attack is reported to have happened at around 9am local time in the village of Chhay Hoe O, around 70km (47 miles) west of Mandalay, according to AFP.

Civilians had reportedly gathered at the monastery for a meditation retreat marking Buddhist Lent.

Nway Oo Myaung, a pro-democracy rebel, told AFP that those killed included 11 men and three women. The victims were said to be aged between 50 and 70, with five from one village and the remaining nine from a neighbouring township.

A second opposition fighter, who was involved in searching for survivors, said the aircraft returned while rescue efforts were under way.

"While we were trying to rescue people, the aircraft came to bomb a second time," he said.

The country's military has not commented on the reported attack.

The strike comes amid a civil war that has continued since the military seized power in a 2021 coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi. The country has remained under martial rule, while the military has faced repeated accusations of carrying out attacks on civilian and public sites.

The military has previously maintained that it targets legitimate military objectives.

The reported deaths at the monastery have prompted renewed concern over the safety of civilians caught up in the ongoing conflict, particularly those gathering at religious sites.

Details surrounding the attack, including the exact circumstances of the air strikes, remain unclear.