Bi-weekly Update on the Current Situation in Myanmar (16-08-2025 to 31-08-2025)

Bi-weekly Update on the Current Situation in Myanmar

(16-08-2025 to 31-08-2025)

Over (54) months ago, on 1 February 2021, the military junta attempted an illegal coup, toppled the elected civilian government, and unlawfully detained State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi, President U Win Myint, and other senior members of the civilian government, parliamentarians and activists. Since then, the military junta has ignored the will of the people of Myanmar, placed the country in turmoil, and made people suffer tremendously as a result of its inhumane and disproportionate acts.

As of 31 August 2025, according to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP), the military has ruthlessly killed 7,066 people and arrested another 29,608 people. 22,356 people remain in detention and 168 people have been sentenced to death, including 119 post-coup death row prisoners and 44 in absentia since 1 February 2021, when the military unleashed systematic and targeted attacks and violence against innocent civilians. Four democracy activists who were sentenced to death were executed by the military junta in July 2022.

Moreover, over 3.5 million people are being displaced. About 22 million people are in need of humanitarian assistance. Among them, over 10.4 million are women and girls, and over 6.3 million are children. 112,485 houses were burned down throughout Myanmar since the illegal coup until the end of December 2024, according to the report of 27 February 2025 by Data for Myanmar.

According to the UNDP, 49.7 % of the population in Myanmar was living under the national poverty line in 2023. Again, its report in June 2025 revealed that even in Myanmar’s commercial hub, Yangon, nearly half of the city’s population lives in poverty, and the economic collapse, displacement, and inadequate services are pushing more families into poverty every day.

Moreover, due to the complete dismantle of rule of law by the junta, transnational organized crimes including online scam, drug and human trafficking are rising across the country and generating security implication to the region and beyond.

Unfortunately, the suffering of the people has been compounded by the 7.7 magnitude earthquake which struck Myanmar on 28 March. Sagaing Region, Mandalay Region and Nay Pyi Taw were among the hardest hits. Due to the earthquake, almost 4,200 people killed, over 3,680 people injured. Over 3.2 million people were affected. Infrastructures as well as houses and religious facilities were severely destroyed.

Amidst such people suffering, the military junta has continued carrying out of atrocities, aerial and artillery attacks across the country.

According to the data collected by AAPP, from 1 – 31 August 2025, (139) people in total; (56) women and (83) men, were killed by the junta across the country, including (24) children under the age of 18. The identities of these victims have been verified. Among these deaths, Kayah State recorded the highest number of fatalities, totalling (27). Meanwhile, (85) people were killed by the junta’s airstrikes, marking the highest cause of death. During the stated period, the AAPP has also received information regarding the death of (185) civilians, as a result of junta attacks, whose identities have yet to be confirmed.  

War Crimes, Crimes against Humanity and Mass Murders Committed by the Military Junta

Junta Massacres Claim Over 1,000 Lives Across Myanmar in 2025

The military junta has perpetrated 104 massacre cases resulting in 1,069 deaths across Myanmar in 2025, according to data released by the Ministry of Human Rights of the National Unity Government of Myanmar.

The comprehensive data, updated to 31 August 2025, reveals the systematic nature of the junta's campaign of terror against civilian populations, with Sagaing Region recording the highest number of massacre incidents at 28 cases, followed by Mandalay Region with 21 cases and Magway Region with 13 cases.

The data shows that 196 children under the age of 18 were among those killed in these massacres, representing a deliberate targeting of Myanmar's most vulnerable populations. Women accounted for 314 of the deaths, whilst 415 men were killed. A further 340 victims were of unknown gender, highlighting the brutal and indiscriminate nature of these attacks.

The junta's use of aerial bombardments has proven particularly deadly, with airstrikes accounting for the vast majority of civilian casualties across the country. From 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2025, the junta conducted 3,402 airstrike cases, killing 3,689 people nationwide.

Sagaing Region has suffered the most devastating impact, with 748 airstrike cases resulting in 552 deaths. Mandalay Region recorded 561 airstrike cases with 377 fatalities, whilst Magway Region saw 360 cases leading to 183 deaths. The systematic nature of these attacks is evident in the targeting of civilian infrastructure, with airstrikes deliberately hitting schools, hospitals, religious buildings, and residential areas where no military targets were present.

Beyond the massacres, the junta has committed 5,192 documented human rights violations across Myanmar in 2025. Sagaing Region again recorded the highest number with 988 cases, followed by Mandalay Region with 959 cases and Magway Region with 789 cases.

The violations include 1,066 cases of extrajudicial killings, 1,044 incidents of property destruction, 638 cases of forced labour, 359 arbitrary arrests, and 226 cases of forced displacement. These figures represent clear violations of international humanitarian law and constitute war crimes and crimes against humanity. The deliberate targeting of civilians, including children and women, in areas with no military significance demonstrates the junta's strategy of using terror to suppress civilians.

Junta Airstrike Kills Five Civilians in Magway Region Village

Five villagers were killed and seven others wounded in an airstrike conducted by the military junta on Ngatayaw village in the Yaelekyun area of Yesagyo Township, Magway Region, according to Mizzima’s Report.

The attack occurred at approximately 1:15 pm on 31 August, when a Russian-made Mi-35 helicopter dropped two bombs on the village and opened fire with machine guns, local sources reported. A local resident stated that there was no fighting break out at the time of airstrike. The junta dropped both bombs simultaneously, and the impact was severe because they struck residential homes.

Three villagers were killed instantly in the strike, whilst two more succumbed to their injuries later that evening, raising the death toll to five. Seven others, mostly women, were wounded.  Just days earlier, on 26 August, junta troops in Yesagyo shot at a motorcycle rider for not wearing a helmet. The gunfire killed a local resident who had been drying clothes in his yard.

Junta Airstrike Kills Four Civilians in Sagaing Region Village

Four civilians, including three men and one woman, were killed in an airstrike carried out by the military junta in Wetlet Township, Sagaing Region, on 27 August, according to the Wetlet Information Network.

The strike launched by a fighter jet departed from the Tada-U military airfield hit Yonepinkone Village at around 5:15 pm on 27 August, the Wetlet Information Network reported. A local resident told the group that moreover, they fired large rockets and machine guns at the clinic. Among the dead were a man in his 40s, two other men, and a woman in her 50s identified as Daw San. Six others were also wounded.  The attack was carried out without any reported clashes in the area. After the airstrike, artillery shells were fired continuously from junta units based in Madaya Township.

Two earlier separate airstrikes on 18 August struck Nabepinhla Monastery in the southeastern part of Wetlet Township, damaging a religious facility and injuring a 70-year-old monk, a 70-year-old woman, and an 11-year-old boy. Resistance sources say the junta has been intensifying airstrikes across Wetlet Township even in the absence of armed engagements. Revolutionary organizations in the area have urged residents to remain alert to the ongoing threat of aerial attacks.

Junta Drone Attack Kills Couple, Orphans Two Children in Bago Region

The military junta carried out drone attacks on Thayet Gone Village, Gyobingauk Township in Tharrawaddy District, western Bago Region, on 20 August, killing a couple but sparing their two children, according to Mizzima.

Junta troops based near Ah Lae Gone Police Station in an area known as Tha Dar Gyi dropped two bombs from a drone during the evening strike. Ko Min Zaw Oo, 47, was killed instantly, whilst his wife, 49-year-old Daw Maw, died from severe injuries on the way to a hospital. Three houses were also destroyed. A local resident said that at the time of the attack, Ko Min Zaw Oo, Daw Maw, and their daughter, a sixth-grade student, were at home. Another child, a fourth-grader, was at the neighbouring house. The children were unharmed, but their parents lost their lives.

The surviving daughter described her ordeal, saying that when she tried to flee, flames were blazing all around and she could not run. She stayed where she was, but as the fire intensified, she jumped out. She yelled out to her parents when she reached the doorway, but they did not respond. Then corrugated iron sheets came crashing down and almost trapped her, but she managed to dodge them and run into another house.

Local residents said Thayet Gone was neither a base for resistance forces nor an area of active fighting, describing the strike as indiscriminate. A local from Bago Region said that village had nothing to do with revolutionary forces. The source stated they could not understand why the junta targeted it, noting that if revolutionary troops had been stationed there, perhaps it would be explainable. But it was not like that, describing the attack as truly unacceptable.

Karenni State Condemns Junta Airstrike That Killed 32 Civilians in Mawchi Town

The Interim Executive Council of Karenni State issued a press statement on 18 August condemning deadly airstrikes carried out by the military junta on Mawchi Town in Karenni (Kayah) State.

On 17 August, the junta carried out airstrikes and indiscriminate attacks using military aircraft targeting civilian areas in Mawchi Town, Karenni State, killing 32 civilians, injuring five others, and leaving several residents still missing, according to the statement. The Interim Executive Council noted that in 2025 alone, the junta has already conducted approximately 11 aerial attacks using fighter jets in the Mawchi area.

The Interim Executive Council of Karenni State expressed its deepest condolences with the families of the civilians who lost their lives in this tragic incident. The Council affirmed its commitment to stand alongside the people and the revolutionary forces in responding to the junta's ruthless airstrikes and heavy artillery attacks against innocent civilians. The statement strongly urged the international community, including the United Nations and ASEAN, to give serious attention and take decisive action against the unlawful junta committing these serious crimes against civilians.

The systematic targeting of civilian areas in Mawchi town represents a clear violation of international humanitarian law and constitutes war crimes. The repeated nature of these attacks, with 11 separate bombing incidents in 2025 alone, demonstrates the junta's deliberate campaign to terrorise civilian populations in areas outside its control. The international community continues to document these atrocities as evidence for future accountability mechanisms.

Human Rights Abuses

Political Prisoner Dies Under Torture at Hpa-An Prison After Demanding Better Food

A recently released political prisoner from Hpa-An Prison revealed that 12 political detainees who had asked for more nutritious food were placed in solitary confinement and tortured by prison officials, resulting in the death of one prisoner.

The junta allocated funds in April for nutritious meals at Hpa-an Prison, Kayin State. However, prison staff reportedly misused the money and failed to provide proper food to inmates. In response, political prisoners in the Kyokya dormitory submitted a demand for better meals. On 14 June, 150 political prisoners were removed from their dormitory by police and prison staff. Of these, 12 individuals seen as leaders were shackled by their legs and locked in an eight-room building.

By 13 July, the shackles were removed, but the detainees were beaten again. Political prisoner Ko Nyan Min Tun died during this beating. Two others were seriously injured.

A released prisoner described the scene, stating that they beat them whilst their chains were still dangling. They dragged them out of the room one by one and beat them. Those who lost consciousness were pulled away and thrown back inside. Because they just dumped him like that, they did not know how he died overnight. Only in the morning, when staff unlocked the room, did they find the dead body. One injured was taken to the hospital, and another was treated inside the prison clinic with a plaster cast.

Ko Nyan Min Tun, from Pyapon in Ayeyarwady Region, was imprisoned in 2023 under Section 49(a) of the Counter-Terrorism Law. The other 11 solitary detainees are from Yangon, Bago, Naypyitaw, and Ayeyarwady Region, and were sentenced under terrorism-related charges between 2022 and 2024.

One of the injured was hospitalized at Hpa-an General Hospital for five days. Upon return, he was placed back in solitary confinement. Of the original 12, one has died and the remaining 11 were still in isolation as of 2 September, according to the released prisoner, raising serious concerns about their well-being.

Since the incident, inmates are allocated a fixed amount of water for bathing. Any additional water more than 10 cups costs 20,000 kyats per month. The released prisoner said that up to his release at the end of August, meals still lacked enough meat, and the bean soup was of very poor quality, nothing more than watery broth. Hpa-an Prison currently holds about 1,800 inmates, including around 200 political prisoners.

The above-mentioned treatments in junta prisons violate core human rights standards. The right to adequate food and health, recognized not only under the UDHR but also as customary international law, is being breached through severe malnutrition and medical neglect. The prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment, a jus cogens norm, is also violated as deliberate starvation and contaminated food are being used against prisoners, particularly political detainees. The Mandela Rules reinforce these obligations by requiring adequate nutrition, clean water, and proper medical care, all of which are being disregarded by junta prison authorities. Furthermore, Common Article 3 of the Geneva Conventions requires humane treatment of all persons deprived of liberty. Denying prisoners adequate food, clean water, and medical treatment constitutes an outrage upon personal dignity and may qualify as a war crime if the deprivation is deliberate.

Delivery Companies Impose Widespread Restrictions on Medicines and Essential Goods

Home delivery service providers in Myanmar have imposed new restrictions, banning the transport of a wide range of goods including medicines and cosmetics, according to recent company announcements, Mizzima stated. Ninja Van Myanmar stated on 26 August that prohibited items now include unapproved medicines, cosmetics, and agricultural products not certified by the junta's Food and Drug Administration. Other restricted items are solar panels, power banks, medical supplies, weapons, sharp objects, and goods packed in black plastic bags.

Deliveries of diapers, menstrual products, medicines, and items of uncertain content are also barred in Sagaing Region, whilst diapers specifically are banned in Pyin Oo Lwin, Mandalay Region. A Ninja Van employee said the junta has not officially notified the company about the specific list of prohibited items. However, when they try to send such items via highway terminals, they are often rejected.

Royal Express has also tightened policies, refusing eight categories of goods including weapons, explosives, imitation firearms, sharp objects, communication devices, military-related equipment, batteries, power banks, and generators. Parcels will now be checked by staff before shipment, full recipient addresses are mandatory, and shipments are restricted to personal use only, with limits on quantity.

Meanwhile, Wepozt Express announced that it will no longer deliver solar panels, electrical appliances, cosmetics, medicines, and even food items such as candy to several townships across Bago, Sagaing, Tanintharyi Regions and Mon and Karen States as well as the capital Naypyitaw.

A Wepozt customer service representative said these restrictions have been in place for some time, but enforcement has become stricter since late July. At checkpoints, parcels are opened and checked, and if they contain prohibited items, they may be confiscated.

With bulk shipments now widely restricted, many delivery providers are only accepting small personal parcels, creating significant challenges for online businesses that rely on home delivery to fulfill orders.

The systematic restriction of essential goods, particularly medicines and medical supplies, represents another dimension of the junta's campaign to control and restrict civilian access to basic necessities. These measures particularly impact vulnerable populations in conflict-affected areas who rely on delivery services for access to essential items including healthcare products and food supplies.

Junta Blockade Leaves Crops Rotting and Residents Struggling in Myingyan District

The military junta has blocked the transport of goods in Myingyan District, Mandalay Region for more than a week, causing widespread hardship for residents and leaving crops and produce to spoil. The blockade began on 18 August, when the junta banned transportation of goods between Myingyan Town and nearby villages, Mizzima stated.

According to sources near checkpoints, only passenger vehicles are permitted to pass, whilst trucks and cargo trailers remain blocked. Basic necessities such as rice, cooking oil, salt, and vegetables are restricted, and inspections inside the town have intensified. A local greengrocer told Mizzima that the villages are not allowed to transport goods, so flowers, vegetables, and dragon fruits end up being thrown away. With no buyers, everything is wasted. Products cannot be sold. The gates remain closed.

Before the coup, villages supplied crops to Myingyan, but farming collapsed after 2021. Most products were then brought in from Magway Region and redistributed to surrounding villages. Residents said around 75 per cent of these imports are now left rotting, as they cannot be transported out of the town. Vegetable prices in Myingyan have dropped by nearly half. The junta has also blocked key routes linking Myingyan to Meiktila, Bagan Nyaung-U, and Mandalay, a move locals believe is aimed at isolating both rural areas and the town itself.

Meanwhile, electricity shortages add to daily struggles. Residents receive only two hours of power per day, whilst factories and workshops have been barred from using electricity for nearly two years and must rely on fuel generators. Household industries such as noodle-making and bakeries have largely closed. Violence has also intensified in recent weeks. In the past month, at least 26 civilians were killed across more than 10 villages in Myingyan District.

The systematic blockade of essential goods and restriction of movement constitutes collective punishment against civilian populations, violating international humanitarian law. These measures, combined with deliberate infrastructure disruption and violence against civilians, demonstrate the junta's strategy of using starvation and economic warfare as weapons against communities in areas of resistance activity.

Vaccine Shortage Puts Children and Pregnant Women at Risk in Rakhine State

The unavailability of vaccines has put the health of pregnant mothers, newborns, and others at serious risk in parts of Rakhine State controlled by the Arakan Army, according to medical workers.  A nurse working for the Arakkha Health Department stated that some local people have been unable to access vaccines since late 2023, when the AA launched a major offensive against the junta and aimed at taking full control of the state. The nurse said they have not been able to administer vaccinations for nearly two years, describing it as highly dangerous for children.

Vaccinations were provided free of cost at public hospitals and clinics throughout Myanmar before the country's 2021 coup, but this public service was among others suspended in areas where fighting broke out in response. Pregnant women are supposed to receive a total of four shots, including diphtheria and tetanus vaccines, but public services affiliated with the AA and its political wing, the United League of Arakan, have only been administering tetanus vaccines, according to the Arakkha Health Department nurse.

Although the ULA/AA has established the AHD to provide vital health care in the 14 townships captured by the AA in Rakhine State, junta blockades have stopped the flow of international aid and essential goods like food and medicine to areas under their control. Conditions in those AA-controlled areas no longer allow for vaccination, another nurse explained, noting that the risks are grave. If vaccines are not available, mothers can get obstetric tetanus when the umbilical cord is cut after childbirth. Children also must receive these vaccines, with even missing one dose being unacceptable. Children can also develop deficiencies like rickets that would have effects lasting a lifetime, which are conditions that cannot be cured with medicine.

Parents' worries about their children's health have grown under these circumstances. A new father in an AA-controlled area of Rakhine State said families were still waiting and hoping for the ULA/AA to provide adequate medical services. His son was born just over a month ago and has not received any shots yet. He suggested that the AA must find ways to make vaccinations available.

At a press conference held on 11 August, AA spokesperson Khaing Thu Kha said the group was taking every approach it could to make vaccines available for young children, and had also been working to ensure tuberculosis and HIV patients' timely access to the medicines they needed. However, he did not give details about the AA's policy or any obstacles preventing its implementation.

The Arakkha Health Department says it has provided health training and called on people from all ethnic communities in the state to take jobs or volunteer as health workers. The World Health Organization declared polio to have been eradicated in Myanmar in 2014. However, in July 2019, a circulating vaccine-derived poliovirus strain emerged in Karen State's Hpapun Township. More polio strains were later discovered in other territories controlled by ethnic armed groups, including some emerging after the 2021 coup.

In response, the health ministry of the National Unity Government announced on 3 July that it had been working with various ethnically based health organizations to vaccinate children under five. The health ministry reported that 30,000 children under five had received vaccinations in Karen, Karenni, Chin, and Shan states as well as Sagaing and Magway regions, including 2,000 vaccinated in the past year in the latter two regions.

A local resident from a resistance-controlled area in Yinmarbin District, Sagaing Region said local parents seeking vaccine doses for their children under five have to risk travelling to Monywa, which remains under junta control. According to a report from the United Nations Children's Fund, Myanmar had one of the highest proportions of children who had not received some or all of their recommended vaccinations between 2019 and 2021. Some 60 per cent had received no vaccines at all and were highly vulnerable to contracting preventable diseases, the UNICEF report stated.

The junta's blockade of medical supplies to areas outside its control represents a serious violation of international humanitarian law, which requires parties to conflict to ensure civilian access to essential medical care. The denial of basic healthcare, including life-saving vaccines, constitutes collective punishment and endangers the lives of Myanmar's most vulnerable populations.

Activities of the National Unity Government

NUG Marks Eighth Anniversary of Rohingya Atrocities, Calls for Dismantling of Junta

The National Unity Government issued a statement on 25 August marking the eighth anniversary of the junta's atrocities against the Rohingya, declaring that true justice and human rights for all people in Myanmar, including the Rohingya, can only be achieved by completely dismantling the junta.

The NUG condemned the junta's brutal campaign against the Rohingya in 2017 as grave crimes, expressing solidarity with the victims and reaffirming its commitment to stand firmly with the Rohingya in the pursuit of justice.

Over 400 Junta Personnel Defect to NUG Forces in Seven Months

More than 400 personnel, including two majors, defected from the junta to allied forces of the National Unity Government between 1 January and 31 July, according to the statement of the Ministry of Defence released on 20 August 2025.

The 409 defectors, comprising soldiers, police, junta-appointed administrators, and members of the SNA, sought refuge under its People's Embrace programme, coordinated by the Central Committee for the Implementation of People's Embrace and the Ministry of Defence. Among them were six lieutenant colonels, two majors, and one captain, a development the NUG highlighted as evidence that even senior officers no longer wish to remain with the junta.

The People's Embrace programme represents the NUG's systematic effort to encourage defections from junta forces by offering protection and integration opportunities for those willing to abandon the military hierarchy. The defection of senior officers indicates growing dissatisfaction within junta ranks as the military faces increasing battlefield losses and mounting international pressure.

Myanmar Ambassador Highlights Junta's Sexual Violence at UN Security Council

Myanmar's Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun, addressed the UN Security Council on 19 August, emphasising key points about the junta's systematic use of sexual violence against civilians.

Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun stated that since the 2021 illegal coup, the environment for women and girls to live safely and peacefully in Myanmar has been shrinking. The junta continues using sexual violence to attack the civilian population as part of its standard operating procedure. The ambassador highlighted that some sexual violence by junta forces, including rapes, took place in front of victims' husbands, fathers, mothers, siblings, children and relatives. He described such inhumanity as unspeakable, noting that the junta commits these crimes in a widespread and systematic manner.

Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun requested the international community to momentarily put themselves in the position of victims and their family members, and consider their daily lives in conflict settings under the junta's atrocities. He emphasised that every second, every minute, every hour counts for them. The ambassador called on the Security Council, UN member states, and the UN system to take immediate effective action using all available means to completely stop the junta's brutal atrocities. He urged member states to use all available methods to halt the flow of weapons, ammunition, aviation fuel, dual-use items and financial support to the junta.

Ambassador Kyaw Moe Tun warned that the junta's sham election would become a licence for future commission of inhumane crimes, including conflict-related sexual violence. He strongly urged all member states to respect the aspirations of Myanmar's people and firmly reject the junta's fake election. The ambassador concluded the statement by calling on the international community to fully support the people’s efforts to completely end military dictatorship and build a federal democratic union.

Response of the International Community

UN Highlights Myanmar's Compounding Crises as Humanitarian Funding Falls Short

At the daily press briefing on 14 August 2025, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric provided an update on Myanmar, stating that the country continues to grapple with repeated shocks, including devastating conflict, flooding and other disasters that have stripped millions of people of their homes, shelter, livelihoods and sense of safety.

Dujarric noted that conflict between the junta and various armed groups continues to force civilians to flee their homes, exposing them to serious harm and protection risks. Since early July, heavy rains have also triggered widespread flooding and landslides, displacing families and damaging homes, roads and other critical infrastructure. The UN, along with humanitarian partners, has reached nearly 1.3 million people impacted by the earthquakes that took place on 28 March this year. However, underfunding continues to constrain the response.

Dujarric emphasized that funding cuts have forced reductions across all sectors of the humanitarian response in Myanmar, leaving vulnerable people in desperate and dangerous situations. Myanmar remains one of the world's most underfunded humanitarian operations, with the UN having received only $136 million against a $1.1 billion appeal for this year, representing just 12 per cent of requirements. The spokesperson called on donors to step up their funding to address the critical humanitarian needs facing millions of people in Myanmar who are caught between ongoing conflict and natural disasters.

UN Secretary-General Highlights Deteriorating Rohingya Crisis on Eighth Anniversary

At the daily press briefing on 25 August 2025, Spokesperson for the Secretary-General Stéphane Dujarric stated that eight years since their forced mass displacement from Rakhine State, Rohingya people in and outside of Myanmar are facing a further deterioration of their already dire circumstances.

The Secretary-General noted that in Rakhine State, Rohingya and other civilians are caught in the crossfire between the junta and the Arakan Army and subjected to forced recruitment, human rights violations and many other abuses. Continued violence has forced more Rohingya to flee, including into Bangladesh, which is already hosting 1.1 million refugees from Myanmar.

Reports of pushbacks, removals and deportations across the region raise serious concerns over potential violations of the principle of non-refoulement and shrinking asylum space. Funding cuts are severely curtailing education, food assistance, healthcare, livelihood opportunities and protection services for refugees.

The Secretary-General expressed hope that the 30 September High-level Conference on Rohingya and other minorities in New York will draw renewed international attention to finding durable solutions. Special Envoy Julie Bishop continues to engage all stakeholders towards cessation of violence and a viable Myanmar-led political process to build conditions conducive to the voluntary, safe, dignified and sustainable return of the Rohingya people to their homes in Myanmar.

Justice for Myanmar Files Complaint Against Telenor for Alleged Sanctions Violations

Justice for Myanmar announced on 28 August the joint filing with ICJ Norway of a complaint with Norwegian police against Telenor for alleged violation of sanctions on Myanmar. Justice For Myanmar and ICJ Norway filed a complaint against Telenor and the management of its Myanmar operations for violating Norwegian sanctions from 2018 to 2022. The complaint was filed on 19 December 2024.

The complaint details that Telenor violated sanctions by installing, maintaining, and contributing to the setup of sanctioned surveillance equipment connected to the Myanmar state surveillance centre from 2018 to 2021. Following the coup on 1 February 2021, Telenor transferred the surveillance equipment to a subsidiary of M1 Group as part of its sale of Myanmar operations on 25 March 2022. Telenor also transferred sensitive customer data to the junta.

Substantial evidence backs the complaint, including documents from Telenor and correspondence with the Myanmar telecommunications regulator. The complaint provides a detailed timeline, including the November 2017 purchase of the Lawful Interception Gateway from German company Utimaco GmbH, delivered to Myanmar in February 2018.

Yadanar Maung, spokesperson of Justice For Myanmar, said Telenor needs to be fully investigated for sharing sensitive network traffic data with the junta and transferring surveillance equipment to a junta-linked company. Telenor must also be investigated as to whether it aided and abetted crimes against humanity, including through its role in the executions of Ko Jimmy and Ko Phyo Zeyar Thaw by providing their personal data to the junta.

Justice for Myanmar and ICJ Norway are unaware of any Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs license exempting Telenor from the Myanmar Regulation and believe no such licence was granted. The statement concluded that if Telenor violated Norway's sanctions, it must be held accountable in the courts. 

Telenor Data Transfer Led to Arrest and Execution of Pro-Democracy Leader Ko Jimmy

The arrest of 88 Generation Students leader and pro-democracy activist Ko Jimmy was tied to the transfer of his phone usage and location data by Telenor Myanmar to the junta, according to Audun Aagre, former director of the Norwegian Burma Committee.

Ko Jimmy, also known as Kyaw Min Yu, had been in hiding following the 2021 coup but was tracked down after his phone metadata was shared with the junta. Aagre wrote in a feature for Norway-based Panorama News that he was arrested shortly after Telenor transferred the metadata about Ko Jimmy to the junta. He was hanged on 23 July 2022.

Metadata includes information such as call duration, handset type, location, and internet usage. Telenor has not disclosed when exactly this information was handed over. Ko Jimmy was arrested on 23 October 2021, at Pinlon Housing in Yangon's North Dagon Township. On 21 January 2022, he was sentenced to death under sections 49(a), 50(i), and 50(j) of the Anti-Terrorism Act, and was executed at 3 am on 23 July 2022, alongside fellow activist Ko Phyo Zeya Thaw. Two other activists, Ko Hla Myo and Ko Aung Thura Zaw, were executed the following day.

Aagre, now an adviser to the Norwegian Myanmar Support Group, said the Norwegian broadcaster NRK documented in its podcast Telenor's Nightmare how Telenor's data transfers were linked to the arrests and killings of activists. He stated that after the coup, they communicated directly with Telenor and later spoke out publicly, urging them to delete sensitive data before selling the company. They wrote that Telenor has the chance to save lives, but they did not act. He added that Telenor complied with 1,300 junta data requests, including those involving State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi. Aagre said they warned that Telenor and Norway could become complicit in a crime against humanity if the metadata were not deleted, but they did not listen, calling for accountability.

Telenor, majority-owned by the Norwegian government, sold its Myanmar operations in 2022 to Lebanon-based M1 Group and local partner Shwe Byaing Phyu, a company with junta ties. The operator was rebranded as Atom on 8 June 2022. A former employee told Mizzima that the junta continues to access user metadata through Atom even after the rebranding.

The provision of telecommunications data that directly facilitated the arrest and execution of pro-democracy activists constitutes complicity in crimes against humanity. The systematic use of surveillance technology and customer data to hunt down and eliminate political opponents represents a grave violation of international human rights law and demonstrates how corporate cooperation can enable state terror and judicial murder.

Thailand Approves Work Rights for Myanmar Refugees in Landmark Policy Shift

Thailand has approved new measures allowing refugees from Myanmar who have been living in temporary shelters along the border for decades to work legally in the country, a policy shift welcomed by the UN Refugee Agency as a turning point in refugee protection and self-reliance.

The Thai Cabinet on 26 August endorsed two draft announcements: one from the Ministry of Interior granting permission for refugees to live outside designated controlled areas, and another from the Ministry of Labour authorizing them to take up employment under special arrangements. The government estimates that about 42,000 work permits could be made available under the scheme.

According to the Ministry of Labour, Thailand currently hosts 77,718 displaced persons from Myanmar in nine temporary shelters as of 15 August 2025. Many have lived there for decades, with around 47 per cent of the population born inside the camps. Until now, they have been almost entirely dependent on humanitarian aid, which has dwindled in recent years due to global funding cuts.

UNHCR said in a statement that this resolution will enable refugees to work legally in the country and contribute meaningfully to the Thai economy. Recognizing the protracted situation of some 81,000 forcibly displaced people hosted in temporary shelters along the Thai-Myanmar border, this policy shift marks a major step forward.

Tammi Sharpe, UNHCR's Representative in Thailand, described the move as transformative, stating that for too long, protracted exile felt like an unending wait. Today marks a turning point. With this policy shift, Thailand transforms hosting refugees into an engine of growth for refugees, for host communities and for the nation as a whole. She added that by unlocking the potential of long-staying refugees, Thailand was not only upholding humanitarian principles but also making a strategic investment in its own future. Refugees will now be able to support themselves and their families, stimulate local economies through increased consumption, and promote job creation, contributing to national GDP growth and economic resilience.

Rights Groups Demand ICC Referral Eight Years after Rohingya Clearance Operations

Fortify Rights and 58 organizations called for urgent international action on 22 August, eight years after Myanmar's clearance operations against the Rohingya. They urged the UN Security Council to refer Myanmar to the International Criminal Court to ensure accountability for the crimes committed.

Starting in August 2017, Myanmar security forces razed several hundred Rohingya villages and killed Rohingya women, men, and children throughout northern Rakhine State, forcing at least 700,000 to flee to Bangladesh. An Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Myanmar documented evidence of genocide and crimes against humanity.

Since these atrocities, no one has been held accountable in Myanmar for the crimes committed against the Rohingya. In 2021, the junta launched a coup that overthrew the democratically elected, civilian-led government. Since then, the junta has committed crimes against humanity and war crimes, including targeted airstrikes against civilians and civilian infrastructure such as schools, hospitals, displacement camps, and places of worship.

In November 2024, the ICC prosecutor requested the issuance of an arrest warrant against Myanmar's Commander-in-Chief, Min Aung Hlaing. Based on publicly available information, the request is still pending before the court's judges.

The organizations urged the United Nations Security Council to immediately refer the situation in Myanmar to the ICC, to ensure comprehensive accountability for crimes committed against all communities. UN member states should also exercise universal jurisdiction to initiate or support criminal prosecutions of those responsible for crimes under international law, including through national courts.

Whilst the junta has committed the vast majority of human rights abuses since 2021, the groups called on all parties to the armed conflict in Myanmar to comply with international humanitarian law and engage with international justice mechanisms, including the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar.

Justice for Myanmar Warns of Sanctions Loophole Created by Junta Rebranding

Justice for Myanmar issued a statement on 21 August calling for the closing of a legal loophole in the sanctions regime of the US, UK, EU, and Canada against the Myanmar junta caused by its recent rebranding.

The statement noted that the illegal junta's rebranding of the name of its executive, legislative and judicial entity, the State Administration Council, to the so-called State Security and Peace Commission, has created a dangerous loophole for the junta to circumvent international sanctions. As part of its illegal coup attempt and ahead of its planned sham election, the junta dissolved the so-called SAC and replaced it with SSPC on 31 July 2025.

As was the case with SAC, SSPC's chair and vice-chair are the war criminals Min Aung Hlaing and Soe Win, who are sanctioned by Canada, EU, UK, USA and Australia. All 10 members of SSPC are sanctioned in at least one jurisdiction and all were senior members of the junta before 31 July. Since its change of name to SSPC on 31 July, the junta has further intensified its campaign of terror against the people, with indiscriminate airstrikes and shelling, arbitrary arrests, torture and the destruction of whole communities. Last Sunday alone, the junta carried out an aerial massacre in Mawchi, Karenni State, killing at least 32 civilians.

The entity of SAC was sanctioned by the USA on 17 May 2021, the UK on 21 June 2021, the EU on 8 November 2022 and Canada on 31 October 2023. Under control and ownership tests in respective sanctions laws, the designation of SAC generally meant that all entities under its control were in effect also sanctioned, including ministries and state-owned enterprises that the junta illegally seized through its violent coup attempt.

The statement warned that the loophole created by SAC's dissolution may have enabled the junta's recent hiring of the US public relations firm DCI Group, in a $3 million yearlong contract with a scope to rebuild relations with the US, an attempt to launder the junta's international image. DCI has also committed to helping the junta exploit Myanmar's natural resources, which the junta continues to plunder from the people to fund its terror campaign.

The timing suggests premeditation. The junta signed the contract with DCI Group on 4 July, weeks before it dissolved SAC, yet made it effective only after the SAC ceased to exist on 31 July, likely to exploit the sanctions loophole. The junta-controlled information ministry signed the contract for the junta. Since 2021, it was under the junta's former brand SAC and is now under the control of SSPC.

In 2021, the junta hired Ari Ben-Menashe of the Canadian public relations firm Dickens & Madson to lobby the US government. However, the contract was cancelled in July, shortly after the USA sanctioned SAC, because sanctions reportedly prevented payment.

Justice for Myanmar stated that Canada, EU, UK and USA now need to urgently add SSPC to their sanctions lists to ensure the illegal junta remains broadly sanctioned and to prevent their sanctions regimes from being circumvented. The statement also called on Australia to play its part in upholding human rights and democracy by imposing targeted sanctions on SSPC and the junta's sources of funds, arms, technology and aviation fuel.

The junta's calculated rebranding strategy demonstrates its deliberate attempts to evade international accountability whilst continuing its campaign of terror against Myanmar's people. The hiring of international public relations firms using potentially sanction-evading mechanisms represents an effort to legitimize an illegal entity responsible for systematic violations of international law and crimes against humanity.

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Date: 31 August 2025

Permanent Mission of Myanmar to the United Nations, New York