ISTANBUL

A junta airstrike on Friday killed at least 18 civilians, including children, and injured 20 others in Rakhine State in western Myanmar, the Irrawaddy news outlet reported.

The junta forces bombed a private boarding school in Thayat Tabin Village in Arakan Army-controlled Kyauktaw township, Rakhine (Arakan) state.

​​​​​​​Myanmar has witnessed prolonged ethnic armed clashes since the junta took power in 2021.

However, the junta has decided to hold general elections on Dec. 28 later this year.