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Myanmar Civil War and Rohingya Crisis
Humanitarian & Conflict

Myanmar Civil War and Rohingya Crisis

Severity
9/10
Impact
3.6Mpeople
Trend
worsening
Region
Myanmar, Bangladesh, India, Thailand
Myanmar’s post-coup conflict remains a severe, multi-front civil war, with the junta still under pressure from the People’s Defence Force, the National Unity Government, and multiple ethnic armed organizations. Recent reporting cited by the Council on Foreign Relations says the military government controls about 21% of territory while rebel forces and ethnic armies hold about 42%, and the United Nations and Human Rights Watch report more than 3 million people displaced, with the 2026 Human Rights Watch estimate at least 3.6 million internally displaced. The humanitarian situation remains extremely acute. Human Rights Watch says more than 15 million people face acute food insecurity, and AP reported in early 2025 that nearly 20 million people needed humanitarian aid and about 3.5 million were internally displaced; Amnesty reported in January 2025 that the junta had killed more than 6,000 people and that more than 20,000 had been arbitrarily detained since the coup. The Rohingya crisis remains unresolved, with Amnesty noting 2024 was the worst year of violence against the Rohingya since 2017 and the conflict in Rakhine continuing to block safe repatriation. The conflict is concentrated in Rakhine, Shan, Kachin, Sagaing, Magway, Mandalay, Karen, and Chin, with continued fighting and airstrikes against civilian infrastructure. UNHCR reported in May 2026 that around 299,000 people had fled Myanmar to neighboring countries such as Bangladesh, India, and Thailand, while Rohingya refugees remain largely in Bangladesh with no safe return in sight.

Recent Developments

01May 2026: UNHCR reported around 299,000 people had fled Myanmar to neighboring countries, including Bangladesh, India, and Thailand.

02January 2025: Amnesty International said Myanmar’s junta had killed more than 6,000 people and arbitrarily detained more than 20,000 since the 2021 coup.

032026: Human Rights Watch estimated at least 3.6 million people were internally displaced and more than 15 million faced acute food insecurity.

042024-2025: Reports continued to document junta airstrikes and bombardments on civilian areas, including schools, hospitals, and religious buildings.

Interventions

  • UNHCR assistance for refugees and displaced people in Myanmar and neighboring countries, including Bangladesh, India, and Thailand.
  • Humanitarian response efforts by UN agencies and NGOs focused on food aid, displacement support, and emergency protection for civilians.
  • Documentation and accountability efforts by Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch concerning atrocities, detentions, and attacks on civilians.

What Works

  • Humanitarian access for food, shelter, and medical support is critical because acute food insecurity and displacement are widespread.
  • Cross-border refugee protection and support in host countries helps reduce immediate harm while safe repatriation remains unavailable.
  • Documentation of violations and international accountability pressure are supported by Amnesty and Human Rights Watch as necessary responses to ongoing atrocity risks.

How to Help

  • Donate to reputable humanitarian organizations supporting displaced people and refugees from Myanmar.
  • Support organizations providing aid to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh and civilians inside Myanmar.
  • Advocate for diplomatic pressure, humanitarian access, and civilian protection through elected representatives.

Make an Impact

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Verified Organizations

Organizations Helping(24)

UNHCR is mitigating flood risks in Rohingya refugee camps by pre-positioning humanitarian supplies such as tarpaulins, rope to secure shelters, sleeping mats, water purification tablets, and jerrycans ahead of the monsoon season to protect displaced populations from floods and landslides.

Save the Children is responding to Sudan’s education collapse by running emergency education services, including classes for children whose schooling has been disrupted, support for formal and non-formal learning, and programming across multiple states. It reports providing learning services and materials to hundreds of thousands of children, supporting hundreds of schools, and using accelerated learning, psychosocial support, teacher training, and child-centered reintegration approaches to help children catch up after prolonged closures.

NRC addresses the drought crisis in Somalia by advocating for urgent humanitarian funding and delivering field-level assistance to displaced and vulnerable households. Its response typically includes emergency shelter, water, sanitation, cash assistance, and support for people forced from their homes by drought-driven displacement, while also pushing donors to fund underfinanced response plans.

BRAC tackles extreme poverty in Sub-Saharan Africa through a graduation-style, multi-pronged model that combines ultra-poor support, livelihood training, savings access, and enterprise development. In African countries where it works, BRAC supports vulnerable households with coaching, productive asset transfers, skills training, and links to markets and services so families can build stable incomes and move out of extreme poverty. It also runs women-centered programs and climate-resilience work to help households cope with shocks and fragile local economies.

Sources & Citations

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