A United Nations investigation has found compelling evidence that Myanmar’s security forces engaged in systematic torture over the past year, including acts such as beatings, electric shocks, strangulation, and the removal of fingernails with pliers. The report, released by the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM), documents abuses committed between July 2024 and June 2025, based on eyewitness accounts, forensic analysis, photographs, and hundreds of corroborating materials.
The report reveals that children were among the victims, with some detained as proxies when their parents could not be found. In several cases, detainees were tortured to death. While the IIMM has identified senior military commanders as likely perpetrators, it has withheld their names to protect the integrity of ongoing investigations. The findings also implicate both security forces and opposition groups in carrying out summary executions.
Since the February 2021 coup, Myanmar has descended into nationwide conflict, with tens of thousands arrested in operations aimed at crushing dissent. The military has denied all allegations, dismissing them as propaganda from what it calls terrorists, and has ignored more than two dozen formal requests for information from the UN.
The IIMM, operational since 2018, continues to collect evidence of crimes dating back to 2011, including the 2017 crackdown on the Rohingya. However, its work faces uncertainty due to looming budget cuts at the UN. Human rights groups have long accused Myanmar’s military of committing war crimes, including massacres, airstrikes on civilian areas, and attacks on schools and clinics.
The report’s release comes amid renewed international debate over how to hold Myanmar’s leaders accountable. The International Criminal Court has previously sought an arrest warrant for military chief Min Aung Hlaing over the persecution of the Rohingya. Observers say the latest findings could strengthen the case for further international legal action, while also underscoring the urgent need for humanitarian access and diplomatic engagement to address Myanmar’s worsening crisis.