Myanmar: UN investigators document deliberate military attacks on civilians
UN investigators have documented a systematic campaign of military attacks against civilians in Myanmar, including airstrikes on schools and hospitals. The report highlights the use of drones and power gliders to increase the lethality of these operations.
Why it matters
This report provides critical evidence of human rights abuses and war crimes, which may be used for future international accountability efforts.
Myanmar's military has carried out a sustained campaign of deliberate attacks on civilians – including airstrikes on homes, schools and camps for displaced people, alongside arbitrary detention, torture and sexual violence – according to Human Rights Council-appointed investigators.
The findings come in the annual report of the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar ( IIMM ), covering July 2025 to June 2026, published Tuesday.
"One of the areas that we're concentrating on is, because of the suffering that's happening in Myanmar, are the airstrikes [against communities] that are occurring ... We're looking at the command structure and how the orders would be given for such airstrikes ," said Nicholas Koumjian, head of the Mechanism.
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