Myanmar Airstrike Kills 50 in Rakhine Market; UN Condemns — SkimNews
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- UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres strongly condemned Monday's airstrike in Kyauktaw town, Rakhine state, with spokesperson Stephane Dujarric saying the attack brought into 'sharp focus' that conditions do not exist for the safe return of refugees to Myanmar.
- Myanmar's military carried out the strike near the Bangladesh border during a busy period at a market of over 200 shops operated by Rakhine, Rohingya, Hindu, Daingnet, and other community members, killing 50 and wounding at least 58, according to the Arakan Army and local aid worker Wai Hun Aung.
- The Arakan Army, which is battling Myanmar's military, confirmed the casualty figures; spokesperson Khine Thu Kha accused the military of 'deliberately targeting densely populated markets, schools, civilians, and residential buildings' and vowed to retaliate using 'all available means.'
- The UN Human Rights office (Volker Turk) said the casualty count from the airstrike was expected to rise, and women and children were among the bodies recovered, according to photos shared on social media by Wai Hun Aung.
- The Kyauktaw airstrike is Rakhine's deadliest since a December hospital bombing that killed at least 30, underscoring a nationwide civil war — sparked by a 2021 coup — that has killed roughly 100,000 people and displaced over 3.5 million.
- Myanmar's military government did not respond to a request for comment but has previously said it exercises maximum restraint to avoid civilian harm, a claim directly contradicted by the Arakan Army's account of deliberate targeting.
Why it matters: The UN explicitly tied this airstrike to the impossibility of safe refugee returns from Bangladesh, undermining any repatriation framework. With the Arakan Army pledging retaliation and the death toll expected to climb, the deadliest Rakhine strike since December signals further escalation in a civil war that has already killed ~100,000 and displaced 3.5 million.
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