Expert Comment
Su Mon on the Myanmar military’s mass killing of prisoners of war
ACLED’s Asia-Pacific Senior Analyst, Su Mon, comments on the killing of prisoners of war and increasing targeting of civilians in Myanmar.
ACLED’s Asia-Pacific Senior Analyst, Su Mon, said:
“On 8 March, the military airstrikes targeted a detention center run by the Arakan Army (AA) in Ann township, in western Myanmar’s Rakhine state. The AA claims the airstrike killed over 100 prisoners of war detained there. The military has been escalating its counteroffensives there in an attempt to regain control of territories held by the AA.
“This incident is noteworthy first because of the high number of military personnel killed by the military’s own airstrike, but also because it is emblematic of a broader and escalating disregard for life by the military — which has repeatedly carried out aerial attacks on civilians in both contested areas and resistance-controlled areas. Just three days prior, the military killed at least 30 people in Nyaunglebin township in neighboring Bago region in an atrocious attack. In the absence of meaningful international action and sustained pressure, the military is increasingly emboldened to target civilians and prisoners with total impunity.”
For an interview with Su Mon, contact the ACLED press office, [email protected].
Correction: A previous version of this text stated Bago is a region in southeastern Myanmar. It has been corrected.
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