• Burmese
Monday, June 16, 2025
No Result
View All Result
NEWSLETTER
The Irrawaddy
30 °c
Yangon
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Junta Watch
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Books
  • Donation
No Result
View All Result
The Irrawaddy
No Result
View All Result
Home News Burma

Myanmar Military Demands Return of Two Soldiers Who Confessed to Rohingya Atrocities

The Irrawaddy by The Irrawaddy
September 14, 2020
in Burma
Reading Time: 3 mins read
0 0
A A
Private Myo Win Tun of Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 565 (left) and Private Zaw Naing Tun, from LIB 353, confess to taking part in atrocities against Rohingya in 2017 in these stills from videos shot by the Arakan Army.

Private Myo Win Tun of Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 565 (left) and Private Zaw Naing Tun, from LIB 353, confess to taking part in atrocities against Rohingya in 2017 in these stills from videos shot by the Arakan Army.

11k
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

A spokesman for the Myanmar military said two army privates who were taken to The Hague, the Netherlands, after allegedly confessing to committing atrocities against Rohingya civilians should be returned to Myanmar.

Last week, confessions made by the two soldiers while they were in the custody of the Arakan Army (AA), in which they reportedly admitted to involvement in atrocities against Rohingya during the military’s 2017 “clearance operations” in northern Rakhine State in western Myanmar, were made public by rights group Fortify Rights. The group also said the two soldiers were now in The Hague, where they were believed to be in the custody of the International Criminal Court (ICC).

The two were filmed separately making the confessions in July by the AA, an ethnic armed group that is currently engaged in active military operations against the Tatmadaw in northern Rakhine State. The AA shared the confessions with Fortify Rights, which published details of the privates’ admissions last week.

RelatedPosts

Untested Commander Takes Charge as Myanmar Military Faces Toughest Challenge in Decades

Untested Commander Takes Charge as Myanmar Military Faces Toughest Challenge in Decades

June 13, 2025
1.4k
How the Myanmar Military’s Propaganda Efforts Have Evolved Over the Decades

How the Myanmar Military’s Propaganda Efforts Have Evolved Over the Decades

June 11, 2025
1.1k
Will Myanmar’s Military Replace Its Embattled Leader?

Will Myanmar’s Military Replace Its Embattled Leader?

June 6, 2025
2.5k

As long as Myanmar’s civilian and military courts are functioning normally, taking two soldiers to face trial or serve as witnesses at the ICC is an “intervention in the national judicial process,” said Myanmar military spokesman Major General Zaw Min Tun.

“The two soldiers were arrested and have been sent there, therefore they should be returned to Myanmar and to the military,” he told The Irrawaddy.

He said the military’s court of inquiry into the alleged Rakhine atrocities had already begun, and he urged anyone with evidence of human rights violations to send them to the military (or Tatmadaw) via email, telephone or post.

The spokesman said the government and Tatmadaw are taking steps to ensure accountability, including opening courts-martial to prosecute those involved in atrocities against Rohingya, as recommended by the government-backed Independent Commission of Enquiry (ICOE).

In a report issued early this year the ICOE said government security forces’ clearance operations in Rakhine didn’t have “genocidal intent”, contradicting the findings of UN investigators. But it admitted that “war crimes, serious human rights violations, and violations of domestic law took place” against the Rohingya.

The two former soldiers, Myo Win Tun, 33, from Light Infantry Battalion (LIB) 565, and Zaw Naing Tun, 30, from LIB 353, confessed in the videos shot by the AA to taking part in atrocities committed by the Myanmar army against Rohingya people in 2017.

The soldiers were recorded as saying they were involved in killing more than 180 Rohingya men, women and children in Taung Buzar and surrounding villages in Buthidaung and five villages in Maungdaw during military operations in late 2017. Myo Win Tun from LIB 565 also admitted to committing rape in Taung Buzar Village.

The military clearance operations, in which disproportionate force was used, followed the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA)’s coordinated attacks on 30 police outposts on Aug. 25, 2017, which killed at least a dozen security personnel. The military operations caused a mass exodus of Rohingya to neighboring Bangladesh.

Fortify Rights urged that the two privates be swiftly prosecuted and then  made to testify as witnesses to the Tatmadaw’s atrocities against Rohingya.

However, the military spokesman last week cast doubt on the authenticity of the soldiers’ admissions, saying they were probably made under duress.

Major General Zaw Min Tun insisted the privates were arrested before being sent to the Netherlands, contradicting the AA’s claim that they deserted from the military in May and June respectively.

The major general said certain groups involved in the matter had provided the soldiers with passports and visas, but did not identify the groups.

Fortify Rights said last week the two deserters arrived at Myanmar’s border with Bangladesh in mid-August and asked Bangladesh authorities for protection. Bangladesh officials then notified the ICC about their presence, and the two men are currently under a global witness protection program in The Hague.

Myanmar is currently fighting a lawsuit filed by Gambia at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) in The Hague alleging genocide against the Rohingya. State Counselor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi defended the country against the charge in December.

As the ICJ’s rulings are not binding, rights groups are pursuing an alternative approach by attempting to bring military generals to the ICC in order to seek justice for the victims of human rights violations.

Htet Naing Zaw contributed to this report from Naypyitaw. 

You may also like these stories:

KNU Secretary Calls for Constitutional Change to Alleviate Rakhine Crisis

Rohingya Robbery Suspect Killed in ‘Gunfight’ After Refugee Camp Shooting

Myanmar Military to Probe Two Alleged Massacres by Troops in Rakhine

Your Thoughts …
Tags: ICCMilitaryRakhine conflictRohingya
The Irrawaddy

The Irrawaddy

...

Similar Picks:

AA Urges Myanmar Junta Troops to Surrender as Western Command Burns
War Against the Junta

AA Urges Myanmar Junta Troops to Surrender as Western Command Burns

by The Irrawaddy
December 18, 2024
25.3k

Ethnic army reportedly poised to capture regime’s last stronghold in Rakhine State.

Read moreDetails
Myanmar General in Charge of Shan State Disaster Handed Surprise Promotion
Burma

Myanmar General in Charge of Shan State Disaster Handed Surprise Promotion

by The Irrawaddy
February 5, 2024
24.4k

Naing Naing Oo elevated to Lieutenant-General and made chief of powerful Bureau of Special Operations No. 2, in a reshuffle...

Read moreDetails
Myanmar’s Chief of Eastern Command Purged After Karenni Defeats
Burma

Myanmar’s Chief of Eastern Command Purged After Karenni Defeats

by The Irrawaddy
January 12, 2024
20.1k

Major-General Hla Moe is reportedly the latest junta commander to pay the price for sweeping gains made by resistance forces. 

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Counteroffensives Failing Across Country: Analysts
Analysis

Myanmar Junta Counteroffensives Failing Across Country: Analysts

by Hein Htoo Zan
September 20, 2024
16.7k

Three major operations to retake territory from ethnic armies and their allies are being hampered by troop shortages, experts say.

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Orders All Security Personnel to Frontline as Losses Mount in Hard-Hit Regional Commands
Burma

Myanmar Junta Orders All Security Personnel to Frontline as Losses Mount in Hard-Hit Regional Commands

by The Irrawaddy
May 31, 2024
13.5k

Full-time military service order covers soldiers, personnel, police and border guards in eight regional commands.

Read moreDetails
Myanmar Junta Begins Forced Conscription of Women in Some Areas, Residents Say
Burma

Myanmar Junta Begins Forced Conscription of Women in Some Areas, Residents Say

by Hein Htoo Zan
May 31, 2024
13.5k

The regime is selecting women from lists of eligible conscripts and building barracks for them in Ayeyarwady; in Bago, women...

Read moreDetails
Load More
Next Post
A temporary hospital being built at Yangon's Thuwunna football stadium with a 500-bed capacity. / Myo Min Soe

Myanmar Builds Temporary Hospitals as COVID-19 Centers Near Capacity

UWSA chair Bao Youxiang at the 30th anniversary of the founding of the group. / Myo Min Soe / The Irrawaddy

Powerful Armed Ethnic Group Launches Its Own Military Academy in Myanmar

No Result
View All Result

Recommended

The Hidden Fallout From China’s Cross-Border Crime Crackdown in Myanmar

The Hidden Fallout From China’s Cross-Border Crime Crackdown in Myanmar

7 days ago
1.6k
How the Myanmar Military’s Propaganda Efforts Have Evolved Over the Decades

How the Myanmar Military’s Propaganda Efforts Have Evolved Over the Decades

5 days ago
1.1k

Most Read

  • Myanmar Tourism Sector Mocks Junta’s Russia Tourist Drive

    Myanmar Tourism Sector Mocks Junta’s Russia Tourist Drive

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Untested Commander Takes Charge as Myanmar Military Faces Toughest Challenge in Decades

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Sagaing Protesters Condemn Civilian Govt Toll Charges

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Is TNLA, Under Chinese Pressure, Conceding Northern Shan Gateway to the Regime?

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0
  • Sagaing Region Braced for Myanmar Junta Airstrikes After Jet Crash

    shares
    Share 0 Tweet 0

Newsletter

Get The Irrawaddy’s latest news, analyses and opinion pieces on Myanmar in your inbox.

Subscribe here for daily updates.

Contents

  • News
  • Politics
  • War Against the Junta
  • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
  • Conflicts In Numbers
  • Junta Crony
  • Ethnic Issues
  • Asia
  • World
  • Business
  • Economy
  • Election 2020
  • Elections in History
  • Cartoons
  • Features
  • Opinion
  • Editorial
  • Commentary
  • Guest Column
  • Analysis
  • Letters
  • In Person
  • Interview
  • Profile
  • Dateline
  • Specials
  • Myanmar Diary
  • Women & Gender
  • Places in History
  • On This Day
  • From the Archive
  • Myanmar & COVID-19
  • Intelligence
  • Myanmar-China Watch
  • Lifestyle
  • Travel
  • Food
  • Fashion & Design
  • Videos
  • Photos
  • Photo Essay
  • Donation

About The Irrawaddy

Founded in 1993 by a group of Myanmar journalists living in exile in Thailand, The Irrawaddy is a leading source of reliable news, information, and analysis on Burma/Myanmar and the Southeast Asian region. From its inception, The Irrawaddy has been an independent news media group, unaffiliated with any political party, organization or government. We believe that media must be free and independent and we strive to preserve press freedom.

  • Copyright
  • Code of Ethics
  • Privacy Policy
  • Team
  • About Us
  • Careers
  • Contact
  • Burmese

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
    • Burma
    • Politics
    • World
    • Asia
    • Myanmar’s Crisis & the World
    • Ethnic Issues
    • War Against the Junta
    • Junta Cronies
    • Conflicts In Numbers
    • Junta Watch
    • Fact Check
    • Investigation
    • Myanmar-China Watch
    • Obituaries
  • Politics
  • Opinion
    • Commentary
    • Guest Column
    • Analysis
    • Editorial
    • Stories That Shaped Us
    • Letters
  • Ethnic Issues
  • War Against the Junta
  • In Person
    • Interview
    • Profile
  • Business
    • Economy
    • Business Roundup
  • Books
  • Donation

© 2023 Irrawaddy Publishing Group. All Rights Reserved

This website uses cookies. By continuing to use this website you are giving consent to cookies being used. Visit our Privacy and Cookie Policy.