Myanmar Spring Chronicle – August 26 Highlights
(MoeMaKa, August 27, 2025)
AA Reports 12 Civilians Killed, Including Children, in Mrauk-U Airstrike – Myanmar’s Refugee Crisis Spills Beyond Borders
The Arakan Army (AA) announced on August 26 that a junta airstrike on August 25 in Mrauk-U, the ancient Rakhine capital famed for its archaeological temples, killed 12 civilians including children and wounded 20 others.
According to AA’s statement, the dead included:
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Two children aged 7
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One girl aged 15
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Two teenagers aged 16 and 17
Among the wounded were three more children, ages 4, 6, and 12.
This marks the fifth junta airstrike on AA-held areas in Rakhine State this year, with over 70 civilian deaths reported by AA.
Mrauk-U, along with Kyauktaw, Minbya, and Ponnagyun, was captured by AA in December 2023 after heavy fighting. Since then, the junta air force has repeatedly bombed these towns. While some strikes target identified bases or camps, most appear aimed at undermining stability and governance in AA-held areas by terrorizing populations and preventing normal civilian life.
So far, there is no foolproof way to protect civilians from such strikes. Communities build bomb shelters and monitor junta airbases, relaying warnings when aircraft take off—but complete protection remains impossible. Some armed groups have even cut phone and internet services, fearing they provide intelligence for airstrikes.
Despite not always having precise targeting information, the junta continues to use air power as intimidation, striking resistance-held towns and villages indiscriminately.
Refugee Issues Along the Thai Border
Another major development: after decades of international support being withdrawn, Thailand has announced it will now allow refugees in long-standing border camps to legally work inside the country.
These refugee camps, such as Mae La, Umpiem, and Nu Po, were established in the mid-1990s after junta offensives in Karen State forced entire villages to flee. Back then, international agencies provided food, medicine, and basic support. Over nearly 30 years, many refugees resettled to third countries, but thousands remain. In recent months, aid—including rations and medical supplies—was largely cut off. Following lobbying by aid groups, Thailand has now agreed to let eligible refugees take jobs, mostly as day laborers on nearby farms in Tak Province.
A Longstanding Cross-Border Crisis
Myanmar’s civil war has been producing cross-border refugee flows for decades. Each flare-up in Mon, Karen, and Tanintharyi sends new waves of displaced villagers into Thailand.
The issue is not confined to Thailand:
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In the west, the 2017 military “clearance operations” against ARSA drove over 700,000 Rohingya into Bangladesh, joining earlier waves. Today, nearly 1 million remain in Cox’s Bazar camps, with no solution after 8 years.
This shows how Myanmar’s civil war, now in its seventh to eighth decade, continues to create enduring refugee crises across borders—problems that governments and international organizations have failed to resolve for decades.
👉 The Mrauk-U bombing highlights the civilian cost of the junta’s air war, while the Thai decision underscores how Myanmar’s conflicts keep shaping regional refugee realities, decades after they began.