Key facts
- Mandalay's Tada-U International Airport suspended international flights on Thursday.
- Myanmar Airways International confirmed the flight suspensions.
- Rebels launched six suicide drones targeting the airport.
- No casualties or damage to airport infrastructure were reported.
- The People's Defence Force claimed responsibility for the drone attack.
Flight operations at Mandalay's Tada-U International Airport in Myanmar were shut down on Thursday following a drone attack by rebels fighting the country's military. Myanmar Airways International announced the suspension of all international flights to and from the airport, rerouting domestic flights to a nearby facility for "operational reasons." The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar reported that security forces thwarted the attack, which involved six first-person-view suicide drones launched by the People's Defence Force, a pro-democracy militant group. Local media indicated the resistance forces were targeting military jet fighters at the airport. Reuters could not independently verify the situation. Myanmar has experienced widespread conflict since the February 2021 military coup, leading to a civil war involving the military and various ethnic armed groups and pro-democracy militias.