Ceasefire in name only: Reported aerial attacks continue after Myanmar’s earthquake truce

Executive summary

Following the 7.7 magnitude earthquake on 28 March 2025, Myanmar entered a period of declared ceasefires to help support and enable humanitarian relief. On 29 March, several resistance groups, including the National Unity Government’s armed wing with the People’s Defence Force (PDF), declared unilateral pauses in their operations from 30 March and 12 April. The State Administration Council (SAC) subsequently declared a ceasefire from 2 April 2025.

Despite these declarations of peace, Myanmar Witness recorded continued aerial attacks throughout the ceasefire period, including airstrikes and paramotor incidents.

This visual report compares and analyses data from 13 March – 1 April 2025,  20 days before and 20 days after the SAC ceasefire on 2 April. Myanmar Witness’s key findings are illustrated through maps, cluster bubbles, timelines, graphs and case study visuals. The key takeaways are as follows:

• 117 aerial attacks were recorded across the 40 days: 50 before the ceasefire (13 March – 1 April), and 67 after the ceasefire (2 – 21 April).
• Geolocated incidents increased from 22 pre-ceasefire to 34 post-ceasefire.
• The highest number of daily attacks was 12 events recorded on 31 March, three days after the earthquake and two days before the ceasefire.
• Magway and Sagaing Regions recorded the most incidents before the ceasefire, with a total of 13 and 10, respectively.
• Sagaing and Mandalay Regions saw the most aerial attacks after the ceasefire, with a total of 19 and 15, respectively.
• Civilian property and religious buildings were reportedly the most commonly damaged structures, with civilian property accounting for 50% of damage reports post-ceasefire.
• 13 of 15 Regions/States reported at least one aerial attack; only the Yangon Region and the Naypyidaw Union Territory did not.

This report also includes four case studies from Mandalay Region and Shan State illustrating the alleged airstrikes on markets, religious sites, and residential areas. These examples are based on user-generated content (UGC) and satellite imagery analysis to help confirm the extent of damage and the civilian impact during both the pre- and post-ceasefire periods.

While the number of casualties cannot be confirmed, these findings raise serious questions about the SAC’s adherence to its previously declared ceasefire and underscore the ongoing humanitarian harm during this period.

Download full report (English)