The junta carried out airstrikes on alluvial gold mining rafts along the Ayeyarwady River in Bhamo Township, Kachin State, killing around 30 miners.

On the evening of March 10, three junta fighter jets simultaneously bombed gold extraction rafts near Hsinhkan, Namhkoke, Botown, and Myalel villages along the Ayeyarwady River.

The airstrikes killed about 30 miners and engulfed rafts and stored fuel in a massive fire, and the bodies have yet to be retrieved, a Hsinhkan villager said.

“Recovering the bodies isn’t possible right now. Some were burned, and others were swept downstream by the river. The rafts were linked together, so the fire spread fast, which caused so many casualties,” he told KNG.

Junta aircraft primarily targeted and concentrated their bombing on rafts around Hsinhkan Bridge, about a mile north of Hsinhkan Village.

Locals suggested the gold mining rafts were likely bombed because the junta believed they were paying taxes to the Kachin Independence Army (KIA).

“It’s hard to say exactly why the sites were bombed, but the junta has attacked civilian areas before. There are rumors that they hold a grudge against mining businesses that pay taxes to the KIA. Last year, a junta vessel was even sunk near the same spot on the river,” KIA spokesperson Colonel Naw Bu said. He noted that the KIA has not yet been able to comment specifically on the casualty situation.

The area hit by the airstrike is under the control of KIA Brigade 11 and allied resistance groups. Colonel Naw Bu suggested this could mean that alluvial gold mining activities around Hsinhkan Village are operating with the KIA’s permission.

The KIA formed Brigade 11 in 2024, incorporating the KIA-controlled towns of Mang Weing Gyi, Mabein, and Shwegu along the Shweli (Ruili) River into Brigade 11’s area.