Junta strike kills at least 32 at Myanmar festival: Report

ISTANBUL

At least 32 people were killed and more than 50 injured when the junta bombed a Buddhist festival in northwestern Myanmar, the Irrawaddy news outlet reported Tuesday.

Several children were among the dead and injured in the attack on Monday, during which junta paragliders dropped bombs on an anti-regime candlelight vigil near a village in the Chaung-U Township of the Sagaing Region.

"To my knowledge, 32 people were killed, including five from [the non-violent movement and the resistance fighters who protect the area]. The rest are civilians," a male resident was cited by the media outlet.

The bodies of the victims were scattered by the blasts, making identification difficult, he added.

Paragliders dropped two more bombs minutes later in the location, he said.

The festival was held to celebrate Myanmar’s Lighting Festival, observed on the full moon of Thadingyut, the seventh month of the Burmese lunar calendar.