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(London, 1st February 2026) Today marks five years
since the Myanmar military seized power on February 1, 2021. In that
time, the junta has killed thousands of civilians, detained more than
30,000 political prisoners, and displaced at least 3.6 million
people. Its atrocities, which include war crimes and crimes against
humanity, have only intensified over the past year. For Myanmar's
Muslim communities, the military's violence has been accompanied by
systematic attacks on religious life. Since the coup, the junta has
destroyed several Islamic religious buildings through airstrikes and
arson, sealed mosques, seized historic cemeteries, and permitted
ultranationalists to incite hatred with impunity.
"The military stood before the ICJ this month and
denied committing genocide while its allies back home called for Rohingya to be 'shot, killed,
dumped, buried,'" said Kyaw Win, Executive Director of the Burma
Human Rights Network. "Five years after the coup, the military
is still bombing civilians, raiding mosques during prayers, and
permitting open calls for Muslims to be exterminated. Not a single
general has faced justice. There is still no arms embargo, no global
jet fuel ban, no ICC referral. That impunity is why the killing
continues. The question is whether the world will do anything about
it?"
Even as the International Court of Justice held public hearings this month in the genocide case filed
by The Gambia, ultranationalists aligned with the military seized the
moment to incite hatred against Muslims. Nay Myo Wai, a senior figure
of the Yangon-based Peace and Diversity Party, a political ally of
the military-backed Union Solidarity and Development Party, told a pro-junta media outlet that he stands by extreme
rhetoric targeting Rohingya Muslims, including that Rohingya entering
Myanmar waters should be "shot, killed, dumped, buried." Ma
Ba Tha, the ultranationalist Buddhist organization long nurtured by
the military to spread intolerance and violence against Muslims,
organized rallies in Yangon to support junta delegates at the ICJ.
The junta has targeted Muslims through coercive
conscription practices, including raids on mosques during prayers. On
August 15, 2025, soldiers and Pyu Saw Htee militants raided a mosque
during Friday Jumuʿah prayers in Sagaing Region, and seized 10 Muslim
youths. On September 7, junta forces abducted five Muslim youths from
the a mosque in Shwebo during sunset prayers.
The military's use of airstrikes has sharply
intensified, with 2,165 airstrikes from January to late November 2025
compared to 1,716 during all of 2024. Faced with pressure on jet fuel
supplies, the junta has shifted to paramotors and gyrocopters. On October
6, 2025, a paramotor bombed a candlelight vigil in
Sagaing Region, killing at least 24 people including children; hours
later, the military struck the same location again. On January 4,
2026, a gyrocopter attacked a hospital, killing the chief
physician and two staff. The following day, a gyrocopter bombed the
cemetery where he was to be buried.
The junta staged fraudulent elections in three phases
between December 28, 2025, and January 25, 2026, in an attempt to
legitimize its illegal rule. Turnout was abysmally low, with at least
7.5 million people excluded, major political parties
deregistered, and over 400 people prosecuted under an 'Election
Protection Law' carrying penalties including death for criticizing
the process. The Association of Southeast Asian Nations has stated it
will not endorse the elections.
Despite critical advances in accountability this month,
including ICJ hearings and a Universal Jurisdiction complaint filed
in Timor-Leste, significant gaps in sanctions coordination persist.
While 222 individuals and entities have been designated by the US,
UK, EU, Canada, and Australia, 40 percent have been sanctioned by
only one country. India, Japan, and South Korea have imposed zero
targeted sanctions since the coup.
"Five years of statements of concern have not
stopped a single airstrike," said Kyaw Win. "Governments
must impose a comprehensive arms embargo including aviation fuel and
dual-use components, close the gaps in sanctions coordination, reject
any legitimacy for the junta's sham elections, and support every
available avenue for accountability. We have been calling for these
measures for years. The solutions are clear. What is missing is the
political will. Everyday governments delay, more people die."
China and Russia, the military's primary arms suppliers,
both sent election observers and continue to block action at the UN
Security Council. The people of Myanmar have made their position
clear through mass boycotts, silent strikes, and continued resistance
at enormous personal risk. The international community must stand
with them, not through rhetoric, but through action.
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