Myanmar’s ruling junta has confirmed that it carried out an air strike on a village that killed as many as 100 people, including children, who were attending a ceremony held by opponents of army rule. This is feared to be one of the deadliest attacks since the junta seized power more than two years ago.

The airstrikes took place in the Sagaing region, a stronghold of deposed opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi’s now-suspended National League for Democracy. The airstrikes targeted a community hall, resulting in as many fatalities.

Volker Turk, the head of the UN's human rights office, said he was "horrified" by the deadly air strike, which he claimed killed schoolchildren who were dancing. The international organisation demanded that those guilty be brought to account.

"It appears school children performing dances, as well as other civilians, attending an opening ceremony at the hall in Pazi Gyi village, Kanbalu Township, were among the victims," Volker Turk said.

An eyewitness told The Associated Press that a fighter jet dropped bombs directly into a crowd of people waiting outside Pazigyi hamlet in the Kanbalu township of the Sagaing area for the opening of a local office of the country's opposition organisation at 8 a.m. The region is located approximately 110 kilometres (70 miles) north of Mandalay, the second-largest city in the nation.

About half an hour later, a helicopter appeared and fired at the site, said the witness, who asked not to be identified because he feared punishment by the authorities.

The death toll was initially estimated to be around 50, but later estimates by independent media increased it to be close to 100. The military government's restrictions on reporting made it hard to independently verify the incident's specifics. The state-run media did not immediately report on the attack. The military government has claimed in the past that it doesn't employ excessive force.

Graphic video clips circulating on social media – footage that has not been verified – show bodies scattered among ruined homes.

“We are going to rescue you if we hear you screaming,” one person could be heard saying in the video. “Please scream!”

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres “strongly condemns the attack by the Myanmar Armed Forces today”, according to a statement by his spokesman Stephane Dujarric.

Guterres “reiterates his call for the military to end the campaign of violence against the Myanmar population throughout the country”, the spokesman added.

Since the army takeover sparked intense public protest, Myanmar has been in upheaval. Many opponents of military control picked up guns when nonviolent protests were put down with deadly force, and now huge portions of the nation are involved in fighting.

Major offensives have been carried out by the army in the countryside, involving the burning of villages and the eviction of tens of thousands of residents. At Sagaing, the historical centre of Myanmar, the junta has encountered some of its most tenacious opposition. The resistance forces have no defense against air attacks.

Image source: AFP