UN Says Myanmar Military Killed At Least 702 Civilians During Election Period

The UN says Myanmar’s military was responsible for more than 700 civilian deaths during a six-month election period, with a new report covering August to January verifying at least 702 people killed, including 224 women and 153 children.

“- Published Myanmar's military was responsible for more than 700 civilian deaths over the six-month election period last year, the UN says”

BBC

The BBC reports the UN Human Rights Office said the air strikes “remained the single largest cause of destruction and suffering,” and it placed Sagaing as “the most dangerous region for civilians as the military pressed to gain ground,” with 191 deaths.

BBC

The BBC also says an October attack in Chaung-U killed 23 people, including four children, and wounded more than 60 others when munitions struck civilians gathered in front of a school.

In December, the BBC reports a military aeroplane bombed a tea shop in Tabayin, Sagaing, killing at least 19 people and injuring 20 others.

The BBC frames the election period as beginning when the military announced elections that were “widely derided as a sham due to main opposition parties being excluded.”

UN Human Rights Chief Volker Türk said, “As if the people of Myanmar have not suffered enough at the hands of the military, they have now seemingly been forgotten by those outside the country,” in response to the report’s findings.

The BBC adds that Türk warned, “Funding for localised protection efforts was in many areas the only solace from the suffering caused by constant targeting and indiscriminate attacks by the military,” and said “This pullback just compounds that injury.”

KOHA.net

The UN report also links the scale of harm to a “decline in international assistance,” which the BBC says was “further compounding the suffering of millions of people.”

The BBC describes the UN Human Rights Office report as covering the period from when the military “announced elections” through the end of the ensuing voting period.

The BBC notes that large areas of Myanmar remain under the control of armed opposition groups, while the military’s coup in 2021 sparked a civil war with “thousands of people” killed and “millions displaced.”

The UN report described by the BBC warns that a “decline in international assistance” is “further compounding the suffering of millions of people,” as the military continues “constant targeting and indiscriminate attacks.”

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Nilepost

The BBC says the report’s findings include verified civilian deaths during the election period, with 191 deaths in Sagaing and 23 killed in Chaung-U when munitions struck civilians gathered in front of a school.

In December, the BBC reports the military aeroplane bombing of a tea shop in Tabayin killed at least 19 people and wounded 20 others, underscoring the report’s focus on attacks on civilians during the same August-to-January window.

The BBC also states that the UN Human Rights Office referenced abuse of Rohingya people exposed to forced recruitment by the Arakan Army, along with killings, arbitrary arrests and sexual violence.

The BBC situates the election as a foregone conclusion, saying in April Min Aung Hlaing, the general who launched the coup, became president and that the armed forces are guaranteed one quarter of the seats while the USDP won nearly 80% of the remaining seats.