Myanmar briefing: UN experts say conflict deaths since the coup have passed 100,000; local media report Arakan Army attack sank two navy ships near Sittwe

Neither side’s battlefield claims can be independently confirmed. That applies to claims by the military government and by the resistance groups alike.

This is our twice-weekly summary of the war in Myanmar, based on local media, monitoring groups, UN agencies and the parties’ own statements. Figures are as reported by the named sources up to Wednesday 28 October 2026. For the previous summary, see Myanmar briefing, 26 October.

What’s changed since the last briefing

• UN officials told the General Assembly’s Third Committee on 27 October that conflict-related deaths since the 2021 coup have passed 100,000. Russia and China rejected the UN assessments.
• The Arakan Army (AA) attacked three military vessels near Sittwe on 26 October, sinking two, the Development Media Group (DMG) reported, citing military sources. The previous briefing covered a deadly blast in central Sittwe on 23 October.
• The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) raised its count of people killed by the military and pro-military groups from 8,608 to 8,614.
• The EU said it continues not to recognise the military government, as the US holds talks with it.

Key developments

Rakhine State. DMG reported that the three vessels, which included a frigate, had been shelling Ngapyi Island and villages in Pauktaw (Werathani) and Ponnagyun townships from the mouth of the Kaladan River. It said the military responded with air raids and artillery, and that ground fighting continued on the morning of 28 October near Ngapyi Island, Wahbo and Amyint Kyun villages. Network Media Group, citing sources close to the AA, reported that most soldiers who reached Ngapyi’s shore since 7 October had been killed, wounded or captured, and that naval landing attempts had stopped. The military has not published casualty figures or commented on the AA’s claims.

Kachin State and Sagaing Region. Marking the Kachin Independence Organization’s 66th anniversary on 25 October, its chairman N’Ban La said the military “carries out daily airstrikes and artillery attacks against towns and villages”, DVB reported. DVB said the Kachin Independence Army had seized two posts of the Shanni Nationalities Army, which has fought alongside the military, in Homalin Township on 18 and 19 October.

Humanitarian impact

UN Special Rapporteur Kelley Anne Eckels-Currie told the committee that Myanmar had passed “more than 100,000 conflict-related deaths since the coup, the vast majority of which were civilians”. AAPP said on 27 October that 8,614 people had been killed by the military and pro-military groups since the coup and that 15,006 people remain in detention. It listed airstrikes that it said killed nine civilians at a port in Paletwa, Chin State, on 18 October and at least five civilians in Sittwe Township on 23 October. The UN put the number of internally displaced people at 4,058,100 as of 19 October, including 1,335,200 in Sagaing Region and 507,800 in Rakhine State. The monitoring group ACLED said on 1 October that it had recorded 41 military airstrikes on markets since January 2022, killing at least 145 civilians.

Politics and diplomacy

At the UN, Special Envoy Julie Bishop set out the two sides’ positions: “Naypyidaw claims its continuing aerial bombardment targets terrorist groups. The resistance says aerial attacks are targeting civilians, including women and children.” She said the military authorities claim the 2020 election, won by the National League for Democracy, was fraudulent, while the resistance says the result reflected the will of the people. Bishop said conditions for Rohingya refugees to return “do not exist”.

Russia’s representative said it was “unacceptable to brand Naypyidaw as being to blame for the current crisis”, and China’s speaker urged the Special Rapporteur not to mislead the public. Myanmar’s representative at the committee condemned the military’s airstrikes and called its proposed peace talks “a fake promise”.

An EU spokesman told DW the bloc “continues to uphold its policy of non-recognition of the current military regime”. The EU’s sanctions cover 105 individuals and 22 entities. DW reported that the US has held two rounds of talks with the military government since September, and that Thai Foreign Minister Sihasak Phuangketkeow welcomed that engagement.

Why it matters, according to officials and experts

“Will the United Nations act before the crisis becomes permanently insoluble?” Bishop asked the committee. Nicholas Koumjian, head of the UN’s Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar, said “a growing number of its people” were falling victim to war crimes and crimes against humanity. Kristina Kironska of Palacký University Olomouc told DW that the US approach “appears to be pursuing specific interests” such as rare earths and cybercrime, and that the EU’s isolation policy “has achieved relatively little”.

Background

Myanmar’s military seized power from Aung San Suu Kyi’s elected government on 1 February 2021. Armed resistance followed from People’s Defence Forces loyal to the National Unity Government and from ethnic armed groups. Min Aung Hlaing became president in April 2026 after an election held between December and January. The AA controls 14 of Rakhine’s 17 townships, according to the UN envoy; Sittwe, Kyaukphyu and Manaung remain under military control, The Irrawaddy reported. The next briefing is due on Monday.