Washington, DC., 8 July 2025 —
Myanmar is enduring a profound humanitarian crisis. Since the February 1, 2021, military coup, the country has descended into devastation, marked by widespread atrocities, including mass killings, torture, sexual violence, forced displacement, and a vicious crackdown on dissent. The junta, officially known as the State Administration Council (SAC), has waged a relentless campaign of terror against its own people, targeting civilians, opposition groups, and ethnic minorities. The ongoing brutalities underscore the urgent need for international intervention and accountability.
Myanmar’s fragile path toward democracy was abruptly shattered when the military, led by Commander-in-Chief Min Aung Hlaing, overthrew the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy (NLD). Alleging voter fraud, the junta arrested key civilian leaders and took control of all branches of government. In response, millions of citizens rose in protest, sparking a mass civil disobedience movement.
SAC Violence
SAC violence continues to cause significant civilian suffering, especially against women and children. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) estimates that at least 25,000 people have been arrested, and some 6,231 civilians have died, including 1,144 women and 709 children. In 2024 alone, 1,824 civilians were killed, marking the highest annual toll since the coup.
Reports of torture are widespread. Detainees have described forced confessions, mock executions, beatings with iron poles, bamboo sticks, batons, rifle butts, leather strips, electric wires, and motorcycle chains. Reports of torture include waterboarding, rape, asphyxiation, electrocution, and burning with tasers, lighters, cigarettes, and boiling water.
Political prisoners are often held without charge, denied legal representation, and tried in military tribunals lacking transparency. In many cases, detainees are executed or die in custody, their bodies returned to families bearing signs of severe abuse.
Peaceful protests have been met with lethal force: snipers firing into crowds, indiscriminate shootings, and the use of military-grade weapons against unarmed demonstrators. Videos and testimonies have shown soldiers dragging civilians from their homes, beating detainees, and shooting protestors at point-blank range. Entire towns and villages have been burned down as the military conducts “clearance operations” – a term that has become synonymous with collective punishment, a war crime.
Airstrikes and Indiscriminate Bombings
A particularly disturbing trend has been the increased use of airstrikes against civilian populations. Fighter jets and helicopter gunships have bombed schools, hospitals, and displacement camps. One of the deadliest incidents occurred in April 2023 in Sagaing Region, where a junta airstrike killed over 170 people, including women and children attending a community gathering. These airstrikes have no clear military objective and appear designed primarily to instill fear and break the will of resistance movements.
Digital Repression
In January 2025, Myanmar enacted a stringent Cybersecurity Law, banning unauthorized use of VPNs and expanding state surveillance capabilities. This legislation aims to suppress dissent and curtail access to information, further eroding freedoms of expression and privacy. Additionally, the junta has implemented biometric e-ID requirements for international travel and launched a nationwide census with extensive questions designed to identify opposition activists and potential military recruits.
In an attempt to control the narrative and suppress dissent, the junta has blocked access to social media, arrested journalists, and shut down independent news outlets. Thousands of activists and citizens have been arrested for online posts critical of the regime. Myanmar is now one of the most dangerous countries in the world for journalists, with many forced to flee or operate underground.
Exploitation
Myanmar’s economic decline has fueled corruption and organized crime, with the country becoming the world’s largest producer of opium and a major manufacturer of synthetic drugs. Scam centers in eastern Myanmar have become notorious for human trafficking, coercing victims into cybercrime, and subjecting them to torture, sexual violence, and forced labor.
The junta’s collaboration with the United Wa State Army (UWSA), a Chinese-backed militia, has led to the establishment of new rare earth mining operations in Shan State. These developments have raised concerns about the exploitation of Myanmar’s resources to benefit foreign interests, particularly China, amid ongoing trade tensions with the United States.
International Response and Accountability
The United Nations has warned that Myanmar is on a path to self-destruction if violence continues. Proposed elections by the junta have been denounced as a sham, with opposition parties banned or boycotting, and analysts warning that such elections could deepen instability without reforms and an end to violence.
The international response has been widely criticized as inadequate. Humanitarian aid has been slow and often fails to reach those most in need due to bureaucratic or military obstruction. Myanmar’s people are calling out not only for relief but for accountability and justice.
Human rights organizations, including The Genocide Report, have called for an arms embargo, targeted sanctions, and referrals to the International Criminal Court (ICC) to hold Myanmar’s military leaders accountable for atrocities. While some sanctions have been imposed on military leaders and arms embargoes enacted by some nations, key actors like Russia and China continue to support or shield the junta at the United Nations.
In November 2024, the International Criminal Court’s (ICC) Office of the Prosecutor requested an arrest warrant for Myanmar’s Senior General Min Aung Hlaing for crimes against humanity, including deportation and persecution of the Rohingya committed in Myanmar and, in part, in Bangladesh between August and December 2017.
The UN, as well as human rights organizations continues to call for an end to the violence and the immediate and unconditional release of all those arbitrarily detained. The atrocities occurring in Myanmar must not go unchecked.
Photo credit: Military junta’s attacks on desecration of Sacred Sites 3.3.2024 by MPATV. Licensed under CC BY 3.0
Lara Kajs is the founder and executive director of The Genocide Report, an NGO nonprofit organization in Washington, DC. She is the author of Assad’s Syria, and Stories from Yemen: A Diary from the Field, available in e-book, paperback, and hardcover at Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Apple Books, and independent bookstores worldwide. Distributed by Ingram. Ms. Kajs frequently speaks about atrocity crimes, forced displacement, state terrorism, and International Humanitarian Law (IHL). Follow and connect with Lara Kajs on Facebook, Instagram, X, LinkedIn, and Bluesky.