The Hlaingthaya massacre was a mass killing of civilians on 14 March 2021, in Hlaingthaya Township (also spelt Hlaing Tharyar and Hlinethaya), Yangon, Myanmar. During the massacre, Myanmar Army troops and Myanmar Police Force officers killed at least sixty-five individuals. The massacre became one of the deadliest domestic incidents to occur in the aftermath of the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état, and marked a serious escalation in the military's violence against civilians resisting the coup. The violent crackdown also precipitated a mass exodus of factory workers, residents, and businesses from Hlaingthaya, a major factory hub in the country. Background On 1 February 2021, the Myanmar Armed Forces staged a coup d'état and deposed the democratically elected government led by the National League for Democracy. Shortly thereafter, the military established a junta, the State Administration Council, and declared a national state of emergency. In response, civilians throughout the country staged large-scale protests to resist the military takeover. Large-scale protests began in Hlaingthaya in early March. Protests in Hlaingthaya Township, a working-class suburb located in the outskirts of Yangon, were particularly large and well-organised because of trade union members and factory workers who lived and worked in the area, which is the site of over 300 garment factories. The township is also home to many internally displaced migrants from Ayeyarwady Region who were displaced after the 2008 Cyclone Nargis. Incident On the dawn of 14 March 2021, Hlaingthaya protesters had set up cement block, bamboo, and sandbag barriers at major bus stops on Hlaing River Road (locally known as 'Nyaungdon Road'), a major east-to-west thoroughfare, in preparation for sit-in strikes. Around 7 am, 50 women arrived at the protest site, chanting Buddhist prayers to ensure the protesters' safety. Around 9:30 am, thousands of protesters had gathered at the site. Around 10 am, military trucks began crossing Bayinnaung Bridge to enter the township, with approximately 200 soldiers ultimately breaching the barriers and forcing protesters to disperse. By 11 am, soldiers and police officers began kettling protesters by advancing from both directions, deliberately firing at protesters with live ammunition. Security forces and snipers also gathered atop Aung Zeya Bridge, which overlooks the thoroughfare and connects the township to the rest of Yangon, to shoot protesters and other civilians, including volunteer medics and ambulance workers. In the immediate aftermath of the massacre, the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners reported at least 22 deaths and 20 injuries.