Residents say the airstrike surprised the hospital; Mrauk U, under Arakan Army control, faces ongoing conflict since 2021 coup
Rakhine
At least 30 people were killed and more than 70 others injured when a hospital in Myanmar’s Rakhine state was hit by an airstrike, local witnesses and a rebel group reported on Thursday. The Mrauk U General Hospital, a 300-bed facility, was overflowing with patients at the time of the attack.
Khine Thu Kha, spokesperson for the Arakan Army, which controls much of the region, said the hospital was “completely destroyed.” Aid workers described scenes of devastation, with collapsed roofs, shattered beams, and bodies lying on the ground. Remaining patients were evacuated to safer locations.
The attack comes amid intensified fighting in Myanmar, where the ruling military junta has used airstrikes more frequently to target areas held by resistance groups. According to the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project, the military carried out 2,165 airstrikes from January to late November 2025, up from 1,716 in the entire previous year.
Residents say the airstrike caught the hospital off guard, as there had been no recent fighting in Mrauk U township, which has been under Arakan Army control since last year. The Arakan Army and other resistance groups have been battling the junta since the 2021 military coup that overthrew the elected government led by Nobel laureate Aung San Suu Kyi.
Aid agencies warn that attacks on hospitals and civilians have created a humanitarian crisis in Rakhine state. “People are terrified to seek treatment, and basic services are collapsing,” said a local aid worker.
The airstrike highlights the growing risks faced by civilians in conflict zones and raises urgent calls for protection of hospitals and human lives in Myanmar.
