Nearly 70 civilians and POW family members killed or injured by junta attacks in Arakan State in one month

By Admin 02 Feb 2026

DMG Newsroom

2 February 2026, Kyauktaw

Casualties among civilians continue to rise in Arakan State amid ongoing attacks by Myanmar’s military regime. According to data compiled by DMG, at least 11 civilians were killed and six others injured during January alone.

The casualties resulted from airstrikes, heavy artillery fire, landmines, and unexploded ordnance, with airstrikes causing the highest number of victims.

On 20 January, a junta attack on Chaungtu detention camp in Kyauktaw Township killed 21 family members of prisoners of war and left approximately 30 others injured.

As the military regime intensifies its aerial campaign, residents across the region are living in constant fear. “We live in total anxiety, never knowing when the planes will come, even while we sleep. When we hear them, we have to scramble to find any place that seems safe. There is no guaranteed safe haven from these airstrikes; it feels like there is nowhere left to hide for our lives,” a local woman in Kyauktaw told DMG.

A January report by the Myanmar Defense and Security Institute highlighted that Arakan State had one of the highest casualty rates from aerial attacks nationwide in 2025.

According to the report, the junta carried out 78 airstrikes in Arakan State last year, resulting in 236 civilian deaths and 372 injuries.

“The current situation is a complete lack of security. We spend every day in fear. Since there are no safe places from air raids, I believe measures must be created to protect the people. I also urge the international community to increase actions against this military regime that is acting so cruelly toward its own citizens,” said an Arakanese human rights activist.

The MDSI has called for systematic and widespread air raid protection measures, noting that the military regime has begun using different types of aerial weaponry tailored to specific regional targets and conditions.

The military regime is reportedly using its air force to intensify operations against areas controlled by the Arakan Army in an effort to reclaim lost territory in Arakan State.