At least 38 Rohingyas killed by Myanmar military air strikes in recent weeks

At least 38 Rohingya civilians, including 15 children, have been killed by Myanmar military air strikes in recent weeks, the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK said today and called for British authorities to urgently convene a UN Security Council meeting to take steps to protect the Rohingya and other civilians.

"Air strikes and other attacks on Rohingya villages are an escalation of violence and a clear violation of the provisional measures ordered by the International Court of Justice to protect the Rohingya," said Tun Khin, BROUK president, in a statement.

The statement said that on March 18, a fighter jet attack by the regime on Thar Dar Rohingya village in Minbya, Rakhine State, was reported to have killed 22 Rohingya civilians and seriously injured at least 30 more. The regime effectively lost control of Minbya township to the Arakan Army (AA) on February 6 and there was no fighting taking place at the time.

On February 9, a fighter jet bombed Ambari Rohingya village in Kyauktaw township late at night, killing four Rohingya civilians including two children, and injuring 25.

There was no fighting happening in the area at the time and the AA did not have a presence nearby. Survivors of the attack fled to other Rohingya villages in the township area, including the large Rohingya village of Paik Thei just south of Kyauktaw town.

Paik Thei village was attacked by a fighter jet two days later, late at night on February 11. Twelve Rohingya civilians including two children were killed, and 16 were injured. BROUK has obtained video footage of the immediate aftermath of this attack.

"This distressing footage clearly shows that Rohingya civilians were targeted in their own homes. Again, there was no fighting happening in the area at the time," Tun Khin said.

BROUK President Tun Khin said Myanmar's military regime continues to commit atrocities with total impunity, this time war crimes against innocent Rohingya civilians, including many children.

"We urgently need coordinated international action to effectively sanction the sale of aviation fuel to the military and stop these air strikes on civilians."

The Rohingya experience heightened vulnerability due to their denial of citizenship and tight restrictions on freedom of movement. While many Rakhine residents have fled the state capital of Sittwe, over 100,000 internally displaced Rohingya people are detained in camps and are trapped there as the conflict moves ever closer to the city, BROUK said.

As part of the genocide case brought by the Gambia in January 2020 against Myanmar after some 7,50,000 Rohingya fled genocidal acts in Rakhine State in 2017, the International Court of Justice (ICJ) ordered Myanmar to "take all measures within its power" to prevent irreparable harm to the Rohingya.

As penholder (the penholder role refers to the member of the council that leads the negotiation and drafting of resolutions on a particular Council agenda item) on Myanmar at the UN Security Council, the UK has the responsibility to convene a meeting to discuss these breaches of the court's order, Tun Khin said.