August 25, 2025
Eight years after the Myanmar military’s genocidal “clearance operations” of August 2017, the Rohingya people remain trapped in an unending nightmare. Over 1 million live in refugee camps in Bangladesh, another 600,000 endure apartheid-like conditions in Myanmar, and thousands more remain displaced with no path home. Despite international promises of “never again,” the genocide continues in slow motion, with no signs of stopping.
Since 2017, Rohingya communities have endured killings, mass displacement, and denial of rights. Refugees in Bangladesh struggle to survive on severely reduced aid, with families living on as little as $12 per month in food support. Inside Myanmar, Rohingya are still confined to camps and villages under travel bans, arbitrary arrests, and aid blockages. These policies starve, weaken, and dehumanize a population already stripped of citizenship.
Recent developments in northern Rakhine show that the threat is intensifying. The collapse of a ceasefire between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA) has triggered heavy fighting in Buthidaung, Maungdaw, and Rathedaung. Rohingya villages have become battlegrounds. Reports confirm indiscriminate shelling, drone strikes, and raids that have killed dozens of civilians and displaced more than 100,000 in the past year. Families describe hiding in forests without food or medicine, cut off from all aid.
The Rohingya are not only victims of the military’s brutality but also of the Arakan Army’s abuses. The AA has carried out abductions, village raids, torching of homes, and forced evictions. Mosques and Islamic schools have been locked, and Rohingya men, women, and even girls have been forced into labor and recruitment. In some cases, entire villages were ordered to empty, with properties seized and resettled. These acts show that the Rohingya face persecution from both the junta and the AA, leaving them with no safe space in their homeland.
Eight years on, the intent to destroy the Rohingya people remains clear. The Myanmar junta continues to confine, starve, and deny rights to 600,000 Rohingya inside the country, while blocking all prospects for safe return. The AA, now controlling parts of northern Rakhine, has chosen to target the Rohingya instead of protecting civilians. Together, these forces sustain the same genocidal system by different means.
There are no practical signs of safety or dignity for the Rohingya in Myanmar today. Under current conditions, repatriation is impossible. Any return now would only expose refugees to renewed atrocities. Yet permanent exile is not an answer. The Rohingya’s rightful future lies in their homeland, living as equal citizens alongside other ethnic groups.
On this solemn anniversary, ARNA honors the thousands lost and the millions displaced. We also issue an urgent call to governments, international organizations, and policymakers:
- End the impunity. Hold Myanmar’s military leaders accountable for genocide and war crimes. Expand sanctions and support ongoing cases at the International Court of Justice and the International Criminal Court.
- Protect civilians. Demand that both the junta and the Arakan Army stop targeting Rohingya communities. Guarantee humanitarian access to all parts of Rakhine.
- Support refugees. Restore and increase funding for food, healthcare, and education in Bangladesh camps. Prevent forced returns until safety and rights are secured.
- Prepare for real repatriation. Plan for voluntary return to original villages in Rakhine under international supervision, with full citizenship restored and equal rights guaranteed.
As ARNA leadership states: “Our people cannot remain stateless forever. The world must act to end this genocide and ensure our safe and dignified return. We are Rohingya, and Arakan is our homeland.”
For further inquiries, please contact:
secretariat@thearna.org
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