Myanmar’s military has turned to inexpensive aircraft such as motorized paragliders and gyrocopters to intensify aerial bombardments that are killing civilians, according to a United Nations investigation released Tuesday.
The report by the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), established by the UN Human Rights Council in 2018, documents a year-long probe into alleged war crimes and crimes against humanity committed by the military and its allied militias, as well as by opposition armed groups.
Separately, the Arakan Army, a major ethnic armed group battling government forces in Rakhine state, said 20 civilians had been killed in military strikes so far this month. The military government did not immediately respond to either the UN findings or the Arakan Army’s allegations. In the past, the military has insisted it only targets legitimate military objectives and has labeled resistance forces as terrorists.
The IIMM said abuses escalated around the army-organized elections in December and January. Investigators observed a notable surge in aerial attacks in the months before the vote, and those attacks have continued unabated since. The report also documented a pattern of arbitrary detention, torture, and sexual violence.
Civilian casualties are being worsened by the military’s growing use of “double-tap” airstrikes, where a second strike follows the first, apparently targeting first responders, those aiding the wounded, and people attempting to flee, the IIMM said.
The military is increasingly using paramotors—motorized paragliders—along with gyrocopters and drones to launch low-altitude attacks with unguided explosives. In recent incidents in the upper Sagaing region, paramotor pilots allegedly cut their engines as they approached targets, allowing them to glide silently and giving civilians little or no warning to escape or take cover, the report said.
The IIMM’s report coincided with an announcement from the Arakan Army, which said about 20 civilians were killed and 22 injured in airstrikes across three townships from August 1-11. One attack involved up to eight aircraft and lasted about an hour, the group said. The military-backed government has not publicly commented on those alleged attacks.
According to the Assistance Association for Political Prisoners, an independent group that tracks arrests and casualties linked to the civil war, more than 8,000 civilians have been killed and more than 31,000 arrested by Myanmar’s security forces since 2021.
The IIMM said it gathered evidence from more than 1,600 sources and witnesses that could be used in future prosecutions of those responsible.
“Behind every piece of evidence we collect are people whose lives have been devastated by these crimes,” said Nicholas Koumjian, head of the IIMM. “Communities across Myanmar are not only living under the constant threat of violence but are also coping with the profound and lasting impact of what they have endured.”
The IIMM said it is also investigating serious crimes allegedly committed by armed groups opposed to the military, including members of the Arakan Army, who have been accused of rape and other sexual violence against Rohingya Muslim women, summary executions, child recruitment, and the destruction of mosques in Rakhine.
The report noted that numerous people were arrested under an electoral law that carries up to 20 years in prison or the death penalty for acts such as criticizing the elections online or distributing “anti-election” leaflets. The elections were widely dismissed as a sham designed to consolidate the military’s grip on power after its 2021 takeover that ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, triggering a deadly civil war.
