A/HRC/63/19 (a) Indiscriminate or intentional aerial attacks against civilians and civilian objects 13. The Mechanism has collected and analysed large volumes of evidence documenting widespread indiscriminate aerial attacks across the country committed by the Myanmar military. The Myanmar military has become increasingly reliant on aerial operations, and the number and frequency of such attacks impacting civilians and civilian objects have continued to increase. The Mechanism’s investigations reveal a pattern of aerial attacks deliberately targeting civilian objects, including villages, schools, religious and cultural buildings, camps for internally displaced persons, and medical facilities. Many of these attacks hit civilian structures in areas with no targets of military value. The Mechanism observed a notable escalation in aerial attacks in the months preceding the elections organized by the Myanmar military authorities, which commenced on 28 December 2025. The Mechanism is in the process of producing a comprehensive analytical report highlighting several aerial attacks committed by the Myanmar military, and the individuals involved in ordering and carrying out these attacks. 14. The Mechanism has prioritized for investigation several aerial attacks on villages, including in Chin, Kachin and Kayah States and in Sagaing Region; on schools in Sagaing Region and in Chin and Rakhine States; and on hospitals in Chin and Rakhine States. The Mechanism has prioritized the investigation of a series of aerial attacks on a camp for internally displaced persons in Pekon Township, Kayah State, where it has identified the perpetrators involved in the planning, coordination and execution of the aerial attacks as well as their chain of command. 15. Additionally, the Mechanism has identified some of the perpetrator units responsible for the aerial attacks, and the airbases from which they operate across several regions in the country. The Mechanism is collecting and analysing evidence concerning the command structure of the Myanmar Air Force, its respective areas of operation, locations of its facilities and aircraft, and the commanders of the different units during the periods relevant to the aerial attacks under investigation. 16. The evidence collected demonstrates coordination between different airbases. For example, aircraft from Magway and Tada-U Air Force Bases are responsible for aerial attacks in Rakhine, Kachin, Chin and Kayin (Karen) States and in Mandalay, Magway and Sagaing Regions. Additionally, the evidence shows that aircraft from Taungoo Air Force Base Headquarters in Bago and from Nay Pyi Taw Air Force Base are responsible for aerial attacks in Kayah State. 17. In addition to the use of conventional aircraft, the Mechanism has collected evidence of the Myanmar military’s increasing operational reliance on non-conventional aircraft, such as paramotors (motorized paragliders), gyrocopters, and unmanned aerial vehicles, also known as drones. These low-cost platforms have allowed the military to conduct low-altitude air strikes where pilots drop unguided explosive munitions, including mortar shells. The Mechanism has opened investigations on several recent incidents in Sagaing where paramotor pilots deliberately cut their engines as they approached their targets, allowing them to glide silently and avoid detection. This practice provides no warning to those on the ground and significantly reduces opportunities for civilians to flee or seek shelter. 18. Furthermore, since 2021, the Mechanism has noted a steady increase in aerial attacks on villages with religious minorities and in the destruction of religious sites. There have been over 600 aerial attacks against a variety of religious buildings across the country, often damaging or destroying more than one religious structure in each incident. These attacks were often part of a larger attack that resulted in the wider destruction of villages and in deaths and injuries to civilians. The Mechanism is examining a number of such incidents in Chin, Kachin and Kayah (Karenni) States and Sagaing Region. 19. In addition, the Mechanism is examining allegations of aerial attacks aimed at economic targets, such as mining infrastructure, markets and trading sites. The evidence suggests that the majority of these air strikes on economic targets were carried out in areas where no apparent military objective existed in the vicinity, and that they resulted in widespread destruction of civilian infrastructure and in significant civilian casualties, particularly among women and children. 6 GE.26-09554