Three civilians were injured after a junta-fired artillery shell struck a village in Hpakant Township, the jade mining hub of Kachin State.

At around 10:30 am on August 18, a junta artillery shell exploded near Hsengtaung Village in Seikmu Village Tract.

Junta troops stationed in Hpakant Town fired two artillery shells at Hsengtaung and Bazanchauk villages, with the shell that landed near Hsengtaung causing civilian injuries.

The three injured, a 15-year-old, a 50-year-old, and an 80-year-old received treatment with the assistance of local social relief organizations, according to a Hpakant Township resident.

He added that the junta’s deliberate shelling of civilian areas amounts to a war crime.

“The deliberate targeting of civilian areas with airstrikes and artillery clearly violates the Geneva Conventions. The junta is openly committing war crimes,” he said.

On August 14, a junta drone attack injured five people in Sharaw Hka Village, located in Ayemyatharyar Village Tract of Hpakant Township.

Junta troops that advanced along the Myitkyina-Hpakant Road in late May entered Hpakant Town and have been roaming the jade mining areas ever since.

These junta forces have been engaging in near-daily clashes with the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) and the Kachin People’s Defence Force (Kachin PDF), while repeatedly shelling civilian areas with artillery, resulting in deaths, including children.