A Myanmar military airstrike near a busy wholesale market in Kyauktaw township on 28 September 2026 killed at least 33 people and wounded dozens more, with rebel forces later reporting the death toll had reached 49. The attack occurred in territory controlled by the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group seeking autonomy in Rakhine state. The strike is one of the deadliest in the region since a December 2025 hospital bombing, highlighting the escalating violence and severe civilian toll of Myanmar's ongoing civil war.
The September 2026 Kyauktaw airstrike
- ▪A Myanmar military fighter jet dropped two bombs near a wholesale market in Kyauktaw around noon on 28 September 2026, destroying parts of a nearby bridge and setting buildings on fire
- ▪A 28 September 2026 Myanmar military airstrike near a market in Kyauktaw township killed 33 people, rising to 49, and injured 36 to 58, including 22 critically, per Wai Hun Aung and the Arakan Army's 29 September 2026 statement
The Arakan Army's campaign
- ▪The Arakan Army launched an offensive in Rakhine state in November 2023 and has since captured a regional military headquarters and 14 of the state's 17 townships, including Kyauktaw
- ▪The Arakan Army is a well-trained and well-armed military wing seeking autonomy for the ethnic minority of Rakhine state from Myanmar's central government
Humanitarian situation in Rakhine state
- ▪The Myanmar military has imposed severe restrictions on trade routes to Rakhine state since fighting intensified, worsening local food shortages
- ▪Nearly half a million people are displaced in Rakhine state as a result of the conflict between the military and rebel groups, according to United Nations data
Abuses against civilians
- ▪The United Nations reported in August 2026 that Myanmar's human rights situation plummeted to a new low, citing brutal abuse against the Rohingya minority
- ▪A Myanmar military airstrike on a hospital in Rakhine's Mrauk-U township in December 2025 killed at least 30 people and wounded dozens of others
Context of the Myanmar civil war
- ▪The protracted conflict between Myanmar's military and rebel groups has killed more than 100,000 people, according to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data project
- ▪Myanmar has been in a civil war since the military ousted the elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi in a coup on 1 February 2021, triggering widespread armed resistance
Debatable claims
- ▪The Myanmar military's trade restrictions on Rakhine state are an acceptable security measure
- ▪Armed retaliation by the Arakan Army is a justified response to military airstrikes
- ▪The Myanmar military's airstrike on Kyauktaw was a legitimate military action
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