"Children are paying the price": Junta airstrikes kill dozens in Arakan State

By Admin 16 Sep 2025

Written By DMG

Between August 25 and September 12, Arakan State has witnessed two of the deadliest junta airstrikes in recent memory - first on Daing Kyi Ward in Mrauk-U, and then on Thayet Ta Pin village in Kyauktaw Township. Together, they have left more than 36 civilians dead, including children, scores injured, and entire communities displaced and devastated.

Mrauk-U: A community flattened

On the night of August 25, two 500-pound bombs rained down on Daing Kyi Ward, Mrauk-U town under Arakan Army (AA) control. Twelve people, including children, were killed instantly; another two victims - five-year-old Maung Aung Aung and 32-year-old Daw Aye Sandar Hnin - later succumbed to injuries, raising the death toll to 14.

The destruction was catastrophic: 42 homes reduced to rubble, leaving more than 200 people homeless.

"When I went to look at the home, there was only a big hole, like a pond," recalled Daw Phyu Phyu Win, whose house was obliterated. Another resident, Daw Ma Mya Aye, added: "There are no roofs, no walls, nothing. I can't live here. Now I'm staying at my sister's house with my grandchildren. It's not comfortable. We've lost everything."

Locals say fear of further strikes has forced many to flee. "Arakanese people need to be aware of airstrikes these days," warned a local CSO leader, urging bomb shelters to be prepared in advance.

According to DMG tallies, Mrauk-U alone has endured five junta air raids between April 2024 and August 2025, killing 61 people and injuring 77.

Kyauktaw: School dormitory targeted

Barely two weeks later, at around 1 a.m. on September 12, Thayet Ta Pin village in Kyauktaw Township was struck. A bomb hit the village's private school, collapsing its dormitory. Seventeen students and civilians were killed instantly, and five more later succumbed to their injuries. By midday, the death toll had risen to 22 - including 19 students from Grades 8 to 12, aged between 15 and 21 - with another 26 wounded.

Among them was 17-year-old Maung Aung Kyaw Nyunt, a Grade-12 student from Zedi Taung village. His mother, Daw Ma Kyun Sein, grieving, said:

"He was the youngest. His father is gone. His brother worked abroad to support his schooling. He studied with whatever we could give. Now he's gone. I want to destroy the aircraft that killed him."

His sister, Ma San Ri, added: "He dreamed of studying computer science, teaching, and working in technology. Now this has happened. We are heartbroken."

Victims included students from at least six villages, some of them already displaced by earlier fighting.

"Words fail me. I'm shocked that they would do this to children who had done nothing wrong," said U Thar, head of the village school.

UNICEF: "Violence against children must stop"

The UNICEF statement released on September 12 condemned the Kyauktaw attack, warning it added to "a pattern of increasingly devastating violence in Rakhine State, with children and families paying the ultimate price."

"Children are losing their lives in the very spaces meant to protect them - their homes, schools, and neighborhoods," UNICEF said, urging all parties to protect civilians, safeguard schools and hospitals, and allow humanitarian aid.

A pattern of war crimes

Human rights activists say targeting schools, hospitals, homes, and displacement camps amounts to war crimes.

"People are suffering a lot because of the junta's airstrikes," said one Arakan human rights defender. "Resolve the conflict militarily or politically - but stop targeting civilians. This is a blatant violation of human rights."

The Arakan Army accuses the junta of systematically bombing civilian infrastructure. Its August 11 briefing documented 926 people killed and nearly 2,000 injured by junta airstrikes, artillery fire, and killings since fighting escalated, with more than 11,000 buildings destroyed, including 10,502 homes, 90 religious buildings, 45 schools, and 12 hospitals.

An escalating crisis

From Mrauk-U to Kyauktaw, families are digging bomb shelters, mourning loved ones, and struggling with homelessness and hunger. But the fear remains: the next airstrike could come at any time, anywhere.

As UNICEF notes, Arakan's children are now being robbed of both their lives and their futures. The international community faces growing pressure to hold the junta accountable for its repeated targeting of civilians.