A late-night airstrike by Myanmar’s military on Wednesday (December 11, 2025) destroyed a general hospital in Mrauk-U township, killing at least 34 civilians, including patients, caregivers and medical staff. More than 70 others were injured, according to rescue workers and independent media.
The attack struck the recovery ward and the area near the main hospital building, leaving much of the facility in ruins and damaging nearby vehicles. Myanmar military is now being accused of a possible war crime by the United Nations, which has called for an investigation into the matter.
The hospital, located in territory controlled by the Arakan Army, had become a crucial healthcare lifeline in Rakhine, where most medical facilities have shut down due to the civil war.
Myanmar military’s hospital strike: An act of war?
After the deadly late night attack, the United Nations released a statement, strongly condemning the strike, calling it part of a widening pattern of attacks on civilians and medical facilities. United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk said such attacks may amount to a war crime and called for an investigation.
The ruling junta has increased air strikes year-on-year since the start of the country’s civil war, conflict monitors say, after seizing power in a 2021 coup that ended a decade-long experiment with democracy.
“I am appalled and condemn in strongest possible terms the strikes on Rakhine hospital which left dozens of civilians dead and wounded,” UN rights chief Volker Turk said, adding that such attacks may amount to a war crime. “I call for investigations and those responsible to be held to account. The fighting must stop now.”
Increased strikes in Myanmar
According to UN spokesperson Farhan Haq, the World Health Organisation has verified 67 attacks on health infrastructure in Myanmar this year alone. “Medical facilities and civilians must be protected,” he stressed, urging all parties to honour international humanitarian and human rights laws.
The UN also highlighted Myanmar’s “soaring” humanitarian needs, warning that 16.2 million people, including 5 million children, require assistance in 2026. Conflict and disasters have already displaced 3.6 million people, many multiple times.
Why is the strike significant ahead of elections?
The airstrike comes as Myanmar’s junta intensifies military operations before the December 28 elections, which critics say are designed to legitimise continued military rule. Rights groups and the shadow National Unity Government (NUG) argue that the polls will be neither free nor fair, citing escalating offensives, especially airstrikes targeting rebel-held areas.
The military has stepped up attacks on armed pro-democracy groups, including the People’s Defense Force (PDF), as it prepares for the election process.
Earlier this year in July, Myanmar’s military junta had lifted the state of emergency imposed since the 2021 coup. With this, the junta had announced the formation of an 11-member election commission led by military chief and de facto ruler Min Aung Hlaing, and declared intent to proceed with long-delayed elections in December.
Who controls the area hit by the strike?
Mrauk-U, where the attack occurred, is under the control of the Arakan Army (AA), an ethnic Rakhine armed group fighting for autonomy. The AA captured Mrauk-U in February 2024 and now controls 14 of 17 townships in Rakhine after a major offensive that began in late 2023.
Rakhine’s conflict-ridden history, including the brutal 2017 campaign that displaced 740,000 Rohingya, adds further volatility to the region.
Myanmar’s conflict: How has it escalated since 2021?
Since the military seized power in 2021, overthrowing Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government, Myanmar has descended into nationwide conflict.More than 6,000 people have been killed and nearly 3 million displaced as the junta battles ethnic militias and anti-coup groups across the country.
The bombing of a major hospital, one of the last functioning medical centres in Rakhine, speaks volumes of both the intensifying conflict and the junta’s increasingly aggressive tactics.
Meanwhile, Myanmar’s NUG has condemned the attack, urging urgent international pressure, accountability for perpetrators and immediate humanitarian assistance to affected communities.