Myanmar's military government admits it attacked a hospital in Rakhine State but claims armed groups used it as a base and that those killed were armed fighters, not civilians.
On Saturday, 13 Dec 2025, Myanmar's military government acknowledged carrying out an airstrike on a hospital in western Rakhine State, where local rescue officials and the media reported more than 30 deaths, including patients, medical staff, and children.
A statement published by the state newspaper Global New Light of Myanmar said that several armed groups, including the Arakan Army and the People's Defense Force—an armed pro-democracy group formed after the military coup in 2021—used the hospital as a base.
The statement added that the military took necessary security measures and launched an anti-terrorism operation against the hospital building on Wednesday (10 Dec). It also claimed that those killed or injured were armed members of opposition groups and supporters, not civilians.
The military's statement contradicts senior rescue officials in Rakhine State who told the AP news agency that military fighter jets dropped two bombs on a hospital in the town of Mrauk-U, an area controlled by the Arakan Army, resulting in 34 deaths, including patients and medical staff, and about 80 injured.
The United Nations said in a statement on Thursday (11 Dec) that the attack was part of an expanding offensive causing harm to civilians and civilian property and destroying communities across the country.
Mrauk-U, located about 530 km northwest of Yangon, the country's largest city, has been controlled by the Arakan Army since February 2024. The Arakan Army is an armed ethnic minority group in Rakhine State seeking autonomous self-rule separate from Myanmar's central government.
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Source:cna