Across Rebel-Held Myanmar, Ordinary People Confront Catastrophic Air Strikes and a Sham Election

In the dead of night last month, a woman was startled by explosions in a nearby village, and subsequently fighter jets circling the area. She ran out her home to see plumes of smoke in the distance.

"We were terrified. We believed the junta's planes might attack us too. So we seized our essentials – some food and clothes and fled into the jungles around our village."

Her face trembles as she tells the events of what happened on 26 November in K-Haimual, found in Myanmar's western Chin area. She's among thousands of civilians who've fled their homes in the past few weeks subsequent to the Myanmar army launched a fierce campaign of aerial attacks, alongside infantry advances in insurgent-controlled zones throughout the nation.

Residents of Chin state have described the junta's latest offensive as the most brutal it has launched in the past three years. A large number of those uprooted have found shelter in different areas of the state. Iang belongs to a group that made the border crossing into Mizoram in India. At present residing in a rundown badminton court in Vaphai, the group's meager possessions they were able to carry are stored in polyethylene bags.

An elderly man has had to abandon his residence at the age of 80, residing in temporary huts in forests for days, prior to eventually making it to safety.

"We are terrified of our own government. They are exceptionally brutal. Their military has entered our and other villages in the past, they've taken citizens, abused them, and destroyed residences," he says.

It is difficult to interview Burmese civilians openly. Myanmar's regime restricts free access in the country for international reporters. It took over the country in a coup in February 2021, soon after the last election.

Humanitarian Cost and Deliberate Strikes

During its latest offensive, the junta in the past week targeted a hospital in Rakhine. Resistance organizations in Rakhine say at least 30 people were lost their lives and more than 70 wounded.

A human rights organization states that from September onward at least multiple schools and six churches in Chin State have been attacked by junta airstrikes, causing the death of 12 people comprising six children.

Verification shows the destruction of a school in Vanha village on 13 October. Two students lost their lives as they were attending lessons. The bombs ripped through their classrooms injuring more than a dozen other students.

Once again, Bawi Nei Lian and his small family – a wife and two young children - have been made homeless. In 2021, following the coup, their home was destroyed by fire in an air strike. They reconstructed their existence in a new community. Now they're homeless again.

"I can't find the words to explain how difficult and traumatic it is and what a difficult decision it was to make to leave. But we had to do it to preserve our lives," he says.

A Questioned Election

The National League for Democracy party, which won overwhelming majorities in the two elections preceding the coup, will not be contesting as its key figures are detained.

"We don't want the election. Because the military lacks the ability to govern our country. They only work for the benefit of their senior officers. When the elected administration was in power, we experienced a bit of democracy. But now all we do is weep and mourn," says Ral Uk Thang.

Iang Za Kim believes the election will be manipulated. "If we voted for a party independent from the military, I believe they will falsify the outcome and claim we voted for them."

The vote will take place in stages, with a result expected around the end of January. Rebel groups have declared it a sham.

Insurgent Frontline and Losses

At a base of a leading insurgent force operating in the state, a vice chairman states: "This vote is only being held to prolong military dictatorship. It's not about the will of the people."

He highlights the areas where the most intense fighting is ongoing. "Battalions of hundreds of soldiers trying to enter the northern part of Chin state from several axes," he says. "The troops are being aided by air strikes, artillery fire and by UAVs."

Visits to such bases is extremely rare. Situated in dense jungle highlands, it is the heart of the fight against the junta in Chin state.

At a medical facility at the base, several injured fighters were admitted overnight and had to undergo hours of surgery. Some of them have had to undergo amputations.

Many of them were just schoolboys when the coup occurred in 2021. Recently come of age, they've set aside their dreams to engage in combat against the junta.

"As the enemy was retreating we ran forward and I triggered a landmine. We were injured in the explosion. Then we were targeted by aircraft. The airstrikes make things very hard for us," explains a combatant. "Although I am amputated, if I must sacrifice my life I'm happy to make the sacrifice so that those who follow have a brighter future."

The impact of the intensity of the ongoing operation is visible in ward after ward at the hospital.

However, it's the backing and courage of tens of thousands of youths who joined the fight that have helped the rebels make notable progress against a better-equipped rival.

Individuals such as 80-year-old the man hope that post-poll, the junta will withdraw, and he will be able to repatriate.

"Yet I believe I will live to see democracy reinstated in Myanmar," he says. "I wish my children and grandchildren can see it some day."