All articles tagged with #rakhine state
A military airstrike on two private schools in western Myanmar's Rakhine state killed at least 18 people, mostly students, with over 20 injured, amid ongoing conflict following the military coup and increased violence by armed groups like the Arakan Army.
Escalating violence in Myanmar's Rakhine State has forced 45,000 Rohingya to flee amid allegations of beheadings, killings, and property burnings. The UN urges Bangladesh and other countries to provide protection to the refugees, but Bangladesh is reluctant due to already hosting over a million Rohingya. The conflict involves the Arakan Army and the military, with both sides accused of atrocities against the Rohingya.
Myanmar's ruling junta has suspended humanitarian access to western Rakhine state, where more than a million vulnerable people are in urgent need of aid a month after Cyclone Mocha devastated the region, according to the United Nations. The decision has paralyzed the humanitarian response to the cyclone and crippled life-saving aid distributions to storm-hit communities. The UN has had "significant engagement" with Naypyidaw and regional officials, but the initial approval for distribution and transportation plans and additional travel authorization was rescinded, pending further clearances.
Cyclone Mocha, one of the strongest storms to ever hit Myanmar, has devastated coastal areas in Rakhine state, with entire villages wiped out and piles of debris stretching over miles. More than 400 people are estimated to have died, and the true toll and extent of the destruction is hard to know due to flooding, blocked roads, and downed communications that have made access difficult. Aid agencies say they have finally begun reaching affected communities, a week after the cyclone hit and following claims Myanmar’s military junta had been impeding access.
Myanmar's military junta is delaying humanitarian access to some cyclone-hit communities in western Rakhine state after Cyclone Mocha devastated the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. The exact number of casualties is hard to know due to flooding, blocked roads, and downed communications. Widespread destruction of homes and infrastructure has been reported throughout Rakhine, home to hundreds of thousands of displaced people. Storm damage has hampered efforts to access rural and hard-to-reach areas while pre-existing travel restrictions imposed by the junta have delayed the delivery of vital aid to communities in urgent need.
Cyclone Mocha, the worst natural disaster to hit Myanmar since Cyclone Nargis in 2008, has left a trail of devastation in its wake, particularly in Rakhine state. The UN reported that nearly 3.2 million people were likely to have humanitarian needs as a result of the storm, which severely damaged homes, infrastructure, and farms in parts of Chin state, Magway, and Sagaing regions. The military administration's restrictions on humanitarian access and aid have posed significant obstacles for aid organizations to reach vulnerable people in Rakhine. Many now fear a repeat of 2008, when Cyclone Nargis devastated the country's Ayeyarwady Delta and more than 130,000 people died amid what Human Rights Watch described as the "brutal indifference of Burma's military government to the welfare of its people."
Cyclone Mocha, one of the strongest storms to hit Myanmar this century, has killed at least 40 people, with the death toll expected to rise. Most confirmed deaths are in Rakhine state, with unconfirmed reports suggesting a higher death toll in camps where the Rohingya minority live. The military junta, which seized power in a 2021 coup, has announced 21 deaths nationwide. The storm has caused hundreds of homes and shelters to collapse, and communication has been difficult. In other parts of the country, there are reports of military attacks on locals following the storm.