Myanmar human rights conditions hit new low, says UN

The United Nations has reported that human rights conditions in Myanmar have reached an all-time low, with widespread abuses against the Rohingya minority and a burgeoning illicit economy driving additional suffering among civilians. In its annual report covering June 2025 to May 2026, the UN's human rights office detailed the relentless conflict, military violence, and expanding conflict economy that have left civilians in severe hardship.

Both the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, which dominates much of Rakhine State, have been implicated in systematic violations against Rohingya communities, including killings, torture, forced recruitment, forced labor, arbitrary detention, and displacement. Neither party responded to a request for comment from Reuters.

Despite the exodus of Rohingya nine years ago, and further abuses since the 2021 coup that ousted Aung San Suu Kyi, the Rohingya people continue to face systematic discrimination. The military orchestrated a presidential election this year, allowing junta chief Min Aung Hlaing to assume the presidency. The military has persisted in using airstrikes, arson, and aid restrictions to instill fear and maintain control, since the coup more than five years ago, killing at least 8,075 civilians since 2021, including 1,774 women and 1,074 children. These figures, the UN asserts, likely represent only a fraction of the actual toll.

The Myanmar military's utilization of air strikes, arson, and aid restrictions to maintain control continues even after the 2021 coup. The UN estimates that at least 8,075 civilians have been killed since 2021, with 1,774 women and 1,074 children among the victims. The military's ongoing use of airstrikes, arson, and aid restrictions to enforce fear and control has resulted in the deaths of at least 8,075 civilians since 2021, with 1,774 women and 1,074 children among the casualties.

The UN's findings indicate that the conflict has pushed 3.6 million people to become internally displaced, while 12.4 million are grappling with acute hunger, and 400,000 mothers and children are suffering from acute malnutrition. In northern Rakhine, the Arakan Army has been accused of arbitrary arrests, torture, sexual violence, forced labor, and land seizures targeting Rohingya.

Satellite images reveal that approximately 2,000 acres have been seized, and witnesses have reported the use of children as young as six for labor and the torture and deaths of detainees in custody. The report also highlights the rapid expansion of illegal rare-earth mining in Kachin and Shan states, where the absence of rule of law has fueled illicit industries that finance the conflict.

Satellite imagery shows 302 new mining sites in Kachin since 2021, and a sharp increase in Shan State from 12 sites prior to the coup to 85 sites afterward. The UN also underscores the rapid growth of the rare-earth trade, which reached an estimated US$1.4 billion in 2023, largely feeding China's market. Toxic runoff from these mining operations has contaminated waterways and farmland, leading to miscarriages and chronic diseases locally.

Moreover, tests conducted on rivers that flow into Thailand have detected elevated levels of arsenic, lead, mercury, and manganese.