UN reports Myanmar junta killed 5,350 civilians since 2021 coup

By AJP Posted : September 19, 2024, 11:44 Updated : September 19, 2024, 11:45
Civilians gather around a bombed building in Namhkam, Shan State, following a Myanmar military airstrike that killed 11 and wounded 11 others on Sept. 6, 2024. AFP-Yonhap
SEOUL, September 19 (AJP) - The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) has released a report stating that Myanmar's military junta has killed 5,350 civilians since the February 2021 coup. The report, based on interviews with victims and witnesses, also reveals that approximately 27,400 civilians have been arrested during this period.

OHCHR spokesperson Liz Throssell disclosed that at least 1,853 people, including 88 children and 125 women, have died in detention. Many of these deaths resulted from severe interrogations and lack of proper medical care. The report details horrific acts of torture, including hanging detainees from ceilings, using snakes and insects to induce fear, and beating prisoners with iron rods and rifle butts.

U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has recommended referring Myanmar's military to the International Criminal Court (ICC) for human rights violations. The junta, which seized power claiming fraud in the November 2020 election won by Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy, has been intensifying its crackdown on opposition forces.

Recent escalations in fighting between the military and rebel groups, including ethnic armed organizations, have led to increased indiscriminate bombings by the junta. The UN estimates that the number of Myanmar refugees has now risen to 3.3 million as a result of the ongoing conflict.

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