Villagers displaced by the junta's airstrikes in southern Kale (Kalay) Township, Sagaing Region, remain unable to return home, face severe food shortages and urgently need assistance.

Since junta airstrikes on Kale Township started increasing on 31 January 2025, around 10,000 residents from 15 villages have been forced to flee their homes and seek shelter nearby, in forests and along stream banks.

A displaced person (IDP) who fled from Kokko Village in Kale Township said: “We're currently sheltering in forests and along stream banks, but the available drinking water is unclean, making survival a struggle. Healthcare is also a concern, but the food shortage is even more critical right now—we don't have enough rice. It's extremely difficult for everyone.”

The airstrikes have also destroyed landlines in the region, making it difficult for IDPs to contact donors and aid workers in Kale Township.

The IDPs would really like to return to their homes, but it is not safe to do so because the junta is continuing to subject their, now abandoned and empty, villages to reconnaissance flights and airstrikes almost every day.

The aforementioned IDP who fled from Kokko Village said to Khonumthung: “Among those displaced by the airstrikes are residents from villages like Kokko, Shadaw, and Yaeshin. The displaced from Kokko, Shadaw, and Lelchar are facing the worst conditions. No one dares to return to their home villages as planes continue to fly over us day and night. Even in the forest, we have to crouch down every time a plane flies by.”

IDPs in southern Kale Township are also struggling with diarrhoea and other illnesses caused by unclean drinking water. They are in urgent need of food, medicine and supplies such as tarpaulin sheets for temporary shelters, and portable solar panels for power generation.