Myanmar: Investigation uncovers clues about shocking school attack
Open-source analysis by NHK and international investigative group Myanmar Witness has found evidence that an airstrike on a school on May 12 – killing more than 20 children – was likely masterminded by the military.
More than 20 children were reportedly killed in the attack.
On May 12, local independent media reported an air strike on a school in the northwestern Sagaing Region. At least 22 students and two teachers were reportedly killed, and more than 100 injured. Reports say more than 20 children and two teachers died in the attack.
Following the 2021 coup, the school's management was taken over by the shadow National Unity Government, or NUG, which was formed by lawmakers ousted by the military.
The NUG's Ministry of Education moved swiftly on the day the school was hit, releasing the statement that an aerial bombing attack had been carried out by the junta: "All individuals implicated in the commanding, execution, or collusion of deliberate air strikes against innocent children, students, and educators shall be subject to stringent judicial repercussions."
About two weeks later, the NUG decided to temporarily close all schools under its control. The closure remained in effect as of late June. The NUG's Ministry of Education temporarily closed schools. Junta issues denials
Just one day after the attack on the school, the junta took to state-run TV, MRTV, which is broadcast in Burmese, to discredit the reports. It pointed the finger at the resistance forces, calling them terrorists: "It is the terrorists who are attacking townships and villages that don't support them with heavy weapons and drones, and abducting, arresting and killing innocent civilians."
A state-run newspaper published in both Burmese and English, reported that "certain subversive media outlets disseminate false narratives to disrupt community peace and stability." The Global New Light of Myanmar, a state-run newspaper, has repudiated reports claiming the military carried out the attack. Eyewitness accounts
NHK tracked down some survivors, including five teachers and three students, and heard their accounts of what took place. To protect their safety, none of them are being publicly identified.
A second-grade teacher recalled hearing the roar of a fighter jet overhead during a math lesson. "Fourth period starts at 9:15 AM. When I heard the sound of the plane, I ran to the office. The bombs hit at 9:34 as I was heading back to the classroom. It just kept continuing," she said. A teacher at the school, her image blurred, speaks to NHK.
The teacher, aged in her 20s, drew a plan of the school, showing where its 292 students were taking lessons at the time. There were 15 classes, from kindergarten to high school.
She told her class to hide under a platform in the room next door while she went to the front office to speak to other teachers. By the time she returned, the bombs had already landed, four children were dead, and shrapnel was flying. She says all of the victims, most of whom were pupils, died because they ran out of their rooms and into the schoolyard in a panic.
"I found some of the students with their hands and heads cut off," she recalled. A layout of the school was shared with NHK by the teacher.
According to the teacher, the surviving students remain in shock and have been unable to study since. One of them, an 18-year-old whose identity is also being protected by NHK, said: "It was during physics class when I heard an airplane overhead. I went out of the classroom right at the time a bomb was dropped. I couldn't help some of my friends. Of course, I wanted to, but I also had to get away to save myself. Five of my classmates lost their hands or legs." An 18-year-old student says some of her friends were badly wounded in the attack. Digital evidence
NHK and Myanmar Witness examined videos and photos from the scene to determine what really occurred and assess the validity of the conflicting claims.
Open-source analysis showed the school where the incident occurred is in Oe Htein Kwin village in Depeyin Township — an area widely regarded as a resistance stronghold. Oe Htein Kwin village of Depeyin Township, Sagaing Region
One notable picture shows a damaged building. Its brown roof matches satellite imagery of the school. The location of the school was geoconfirmed at [22.650894, 95.209071] by Myanmar Witness.
Photos provided to NHK by a teacher show holes scattered across the schoolyard, although Myanmar Witness determined there is not enough detail in the images to ascertain which missiles were used. The schoolyard bears the scars of the attack.
Even so, they indicate the bombs were dropped on the schoolyard, not the buildings, which is consistent with the testimony from the teacher who told us the roof and windows of the building in front of the schoolyard were blown away by shockwaves from the blasts. The building in front of the schoolyard
Examining photos supplied by locals, Myanmar Witness analysts identified fragments from air-launched unguided munitions. They noted the distinctive shape of a tail fin among the debris. Weapons analyst Leone Hadavi from Myanmar Witness identified parts of air-launched unguided munitions.
Myanmar Witness also found some social media posts showing remnants from the alleged airstrike. It determined the images show two damaged tail fins from an unguided air-delivered ordinance, but it was unable to decipher the make and model. Myanmar Witness analyzed remnants of munitions on the grounds of the school.
Myanmar Witness project director Robert Dolan says the debris obtained separately by NHK and Myanmar Witness seem to match: "It's consistent with unguided air dropped munitions, and these are indiscriminate by nature and often devastating when used near civilian infrastructure.
The NUG has published its own investigative report that includes photos collected from eyewitnesses. It claims that based on eyewitness accounts and the shell casings found at the scene, there were two cluster bombs. Despite this finding, Myanmar Witness said it could not provide more detail.
"Unfortunately, we can't reconstruct the full shape or the model of the bomb from the fragments, but our analysis confirms that it consistent with munitions that the Myanmar Air Force has used previously," Dolan said. "The fragments that we have seen seem to be consistent with the type of weapon that would be dropped by an aircraft rather than a drone." Robert Dolan, Myanmar Witness project director Flights on film
NHK obtained three separate videos reportedly filmed by village residents from the day of the attack. Two pieces of footage show fighter jets overhead a Burmese pagoda that is crowned with a spired ornament.
The other video appears to capture the precise moment a bomb exploded. Myanmar Witness notes that while the quality of the videos is poor and the aircraft type can't be confirmed, there is enough detail in the shape and sound of the aircraft to identify it as a fighter jet. Video footage shows the shape of an aircraft over a pagoda. Analysis by Leone Hadavi, Myanmar Witness weaponry specialist.
The video evidence suggests the school was hit by a military air strike — a direct contradiction of the junta's claim. Dolan notes: "The sound, the shape and the altitude would suggest that it was a military jet. The Myanmar Air Force is the only actor that operates jets in in Myanmar's skies. So it would suggest again through that process, it's likely that it's the Myanmar Air Force who are responsible."
He also points out that the supply of arms and aircraft from other countries seems to be ongoing. "What we note specifically is the damage that they do. It really is significant and the use of aircraft and the conduct of air strikes in the country is enormously damaging to civilian life." Information war
Meanwhile, NHK discovered an information war unfolding on social media. One post shows a video of young people making bombs, claiming the school that was bombed was being used as a resistance stronghold. A post alleges munitions were being produced by resistance forces at the bombed school.
One week after the attack, the state-run newspaper ran two days of third-party commentary with still images from the video used to support claims that resistance forces were making bombs at the school.
"That day, there was a school photo session, so students and their parents were invited to the school. Since it was a place where explosive devices were being made, parents naturally didn't want to send their children there."
(The Global New Light of Myanmar, May 21)
"In reality, terrorists had been making handmade mines at that school, and due to the extreme heat on that day, it appears that those mines caused a chain reaction."
(The Global New Light of Myanmar, May 22) Reports support the junta's claim that "terrorist" resistance forces were manufacturing weapons at the school. Conflicting claims
Location analysis by Myanmar Witness suggests the video was likely filmed somewhere else — not at the school in question. It looked at details including what was written on the blackboard and the shapes of the windows. Myanmar Witness compared imagery from the classroom with photos of the damaged school buildings.
"We have continued to document these military aligned social media channels on a daily basis," says Dolan. "We see coordinated messaging and that's designed to muddy the waters to confuse the public as to the tactics of the junta.
"You can't blame the victims in this situation. It wasn't an accident. It was an atrocity. And it's very plain to see…military aligned social media channels that that say otherwise. It is them trying to rewrite reality with hashtags and state media."
In further evidence gathered by NHK, an NUG official from the township's education committee shared a screenshot of a post he had seen before the school attack took place.
He insists the same video was re-used with a different narrative: "I saw a post claiming the resistance forces were doing the same thing before in an area south of the Sagaing Region." Depeyin Township education committee member, NUG The UN's perspective
The Myanmar Team at the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights conducted its own investigation. During a video interview with NHK, team leader James Rodehaver notes: "We don't really comment on the work of other organizations, but in this particular case, I would say…we have reached at least some very similar conclusions to those in the Myanmar Witness report that you assisted with.
"Schools are protected under international humanitarian law and civilians are not supposed to be targeted in times of war." James Rodehaver, Head of the Myanmar Team, Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights
Ahead of the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva, held from June 16 to July 11, the team released a report that covers human rights violations by Myanmar's military junta. It strongly urges member countries to immediately impose an arms embargo. The UN report calls for a global arms embargo. 'We want the world to know the truth'
One of the eyewitnesses told NHK that 14 students were still being treated at a mobile hospital two months after the incident. Many have lost limbs and are awaiting surgery.
A 15-year-old student who has been discharged said he still has shrapnel in his legs that can't be removed. He has little memory of the attack and woke up afterwards in a hospital bed. This 15-year-old student has lasting injuries but little memory of the attack itself.
"It hurts more because my education and dreams have been taken away. I can't do anything now, and I don't know what to do. I hope the military violence will end soon. I want to be free," he said.
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