Junta forces in helicopters reportedly bombarded Nyaung Hla village in Sagaing Region’s Tabayin (Depayin) Township on Saturday afternoon.

“I saw five helicopters flying in the sky above Mu Khadwin village and firing. I do not know who they fired at. We are fleeing from home now,” a villager who requested anonymity told DMG.

Myanmar military soldiers were deployed to the area via four helicopters and another chopper laid down cover fire for the arriving troops, the villager said.

Two young men from Nyaung Hla village were killed by the helicopter gunfire and junta forces torched houses in the village on Sunday morning, according to local residents.

Ko Nyi Nyi Lwin aka U Gambira, an influential former monk who participated in the 2007 Saffron Revolution, said the aerial assault was “use of excessive military force.”  

He added: “According to the Geneva Conventions, helicopter warships are not allowed to be used in civil war. The regime council is blatantly breaching international military law.”

Locals have fled to the nearby forest because Tatmadaw troops near Nyaung Hla village have arrested villagers and used them as human shields, said a group helping IDPs in Tabayin Township.

“The number of IDPs is so high and it will be a problem in the long run,” said the group assisting those displaced. “We are now asking for help from nearby villages. We are facing difficulty to help IDPs because we are running out of food.”