International community notices AA’s torture actions
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Phyo (NP News) - Jan 26
Fortify Rights, an organization working on international human rights and justice, has urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate war crimes committed by the Arakan Army (AA) in Rakhine. According to a video recording they obtained, some AA soldiers were seen torturing two Prisoners of War (POWs), who later died, as stated in a press release by Fortify Rights.
Regarding this incident, AA spokesperson Khine Thukha confessed that that war crime was committed by the AA troops. What is more, the AA also admitted that they also forced Mro ethnics to serve the military for the AA.
This incident has been ongoing for several months, as the leaked video surfaced some time ago. During this period, nearly 20 organizations have condemned the violent actions of the AA. However, despite the widespread condemnation, the AA group did not initially acknowledge or confess to these actions. It was only when international organizations pressured them and urged them to address their extremist actions that they finally confessed for the first time.
Actually, the extremist actions of the AA are not new; they have committed such acts before, quite blatantly. In the Kyauktaw massacre, for example, where over 900 people were executed, this could be regarded as a massacre. However, despite the scale of the violence, the AA did not confess or take responsibility for their actions.
Indeed, there have been increasing criticisms that the AA has been involved in the torture and mistreatment of the Bengali community since 2021. The Bengali community itself has also voiced strong condemnation of the AA’s actions. Given these developments, it seems to be a reasonable time for the international community to question whether the AA’s actions qualify as war crimes, and how to hold such illegal armed groups accountable for their extremist behavior. The pressure for investigation and enforcement from international bodies may be crucial to addressing these violations. –