Myanmar Army's War on Civilians: 702 Killed in Six-Month Election Clash

Tue Jun 23 2026 13:04:19 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

UN report reveals that Myanmar's military caused over 700 civilian deaths during the 2024 election period, including women and children.

In a new UN Human Rights Office report, Myanmar’s army killed at least 702 civilians between August and January of last year, with women and children heavily impacted. The report highlights widespread air‑strikes, especially in Sagaing, where 191 deaths were recorded, and details attacks on civilian gatherings such as a candlelit vigil and a football match. The military’s crack‑downs come amid a jailing of political leaders and a contested election that many see as a sham. Funding for local protection is falling, deepening the trauma among Myanmar’s population.

Myanmar Army's War on Civilians: 702 Killed in Six-Month Election Clash

A UN report released today shows that Myanmar’s army killed more than 700 civilians during the 2024 election period, with 224 women and 153 children among the victims.

The six‑month period covered by the study ran from August 2023 to January 2024, a time when the junta, led by General Min Aung Hlaing, tried to legitimize its power through staged elections that barred opposition parties.

Air strikes were the biggest contributor to the toll. In the Sagaing region, authorities documented 191 civilian deaths, including 60 women and 30 children. The report cites a fatal October attack on a candlelit gathering for the end of Buddhist Lent, where 23 people—four of them children—were killed. A December air attack on a tea shop in Tabayin left at least 19 dead and 20 wounded.

The report also notes that Myanmar’s Rohingya communities suffered forced recruitment, arbitrary arrests and sexual violence as the army moved into anti‑rebel areas.

UN Human Rights chief Volker Türk warned that a decline in international aid only deepens the suffering, as local protection programmes were the country’s main line of defense against widespread violence.