Myanmar junta accused of war crimes over response to rebel offensive
Hindustan TimesMyanmar's military has likely perpetrated indiscriminate attacks on civilians and used banned cluster munitions in its fight against ethnic minority insurgents, Amnesty International said on Thursday, calling for an investigation of suspected war crimes. An air strike in Shan state earlier this month used bombs that were most likely cluster munitions, Amnesty said in a statement, citing evidence analysed by its weapon investigator. "The Myanmar military has a blood-stained resume of indiscriminate attacks with devastating consequences for civilians, and its brutal response to a major offensive by armed groups fits a longstanding pattern," said Matt Wells, director of Amnesty's Crisis Response Programme. In a statement issued before the Amnesty report, the alliance said the military regularly threatened civilians including through arbitrary arrests, use of human shields, and torture.