Arakan Army accused of beheading, torture in Rakhine State

The Arakan Army (AA) has committed serious war crimes against Rohingya civilians in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, including abductions, torture, killings, and beheadings, according to a new investigation released on Tuesday by Fortify Rights. The human rights group is calling on the International Criminal Court (ICC) to expand its current probe to include atrocities carried out by the powerful ethnic armed group.Between April and July 2025, Fortify Rights interviewed 39 Rohingya survivors and witnesses—including eight women—who detailed crimes committed by the AA in 2024 and 2025. The group also reviewed video and photographic evidence, including footage showing mutilated bodies of Rohingya detainees.The Rohingya face systematic persecution, statelessness, and violence in Myanmar, including denial of citizenship, restrictions on movement, and targeted attacks by both state and non-state actors. Hundreds of thousands have been displaced by military campaigns and ethnic violence, forcing many to flee to neighboring countries like Bangladesh. “The Arakan Army is responsible for widespread abductions, brutal torture, and the murder of Rohingya, some of whom were found beheaded,” said Ejaz Min Khant, Human Rights Specialist at Fortify Rights. “The ICC has jurisdiction and must investigate and prosecute perpetrators of these crimes.” According to the report, AA fighters abducted Rohingya civilians from their homes, workplaces, and even mosques. Victims were then held in makeshift detention sites, including abandoned schools and AA military bases, where they were subjected to beatings, electric shocks, and other forms of torture. Ahmed, a 21-year-old from Maungdaw, described how his brother was dragged away by uniformed AA soldiers during Ramadan in March 2025. The next day, his brother’s decapitated body was found in a rice sack in a nearby forest.“The forest is just behind our house. That’s where they took him,” Ahmed told Fortify Rights. “We found him lying on the ground, stuffed inside an empty rice sack. His head was completely detached from his body. We saw his face—I knew it was my brother.” The family held a hurried funeral the next day before fleeing to Bangladesh. In another case, five Rohingya men were taken from Abuja Hamlet in Tha Yet Oak village tract in April 2024. Their bodies were found days later in a pond in nearby Rohingya Daung village: four were beheaded and all showed signs of torture. A mobile phone video obtained by Fortify Rights captured the grisly aftermath. “Their hands were tied. They were punched and kicked before being taken away,” a witness told Fortify Rights. “When we found them, their heads were gone, and their bodies were stabbed and beaten.”Multiple survivors detailed prolonged detention and systematic abuse. One former detainee, Abdullah, 21, said AA soldiers beat him with bamboo, wires, and wooden sticks in Boli Bazar in Maungdaw Township. “They made me squat and beat me from all directions,” he said, showing scars on his back. “They stuffed cloth in my mouth so I couldn’t scream.” Another detainee, Shofiq, said he was abducted from a mosque and held in shackles for several months. He described being beaten on his thighs and groin, accused of links to Rohingya armed groups. While in prison, he witnessed AA forces removing at least five dead bodies from nearby cells.The AA has previously been implicated in war crimes, including the execution and beheading of captured junta soldiers during recent offensives. Human rights groups have documented instances where AA fighters filmed and circulated graphic footage of mutilated bodies, raising serious concerns over the group’s conduct in conflict.The AA has denied all allegations, calling them “false and defamatory.” In a written response to Fortify Rights, the group accused critics of spreading politically motivated fabrications.However, Fortify Rights maintains that these crimes fall under the ICC’s jurisdiction, which includes ongoing investigations into the 2017 Rohingya genocide and forced deportation to Bangladesh. The group argues that the AA’s abuses form a pattern of impunity and brutality. “If the Arakan Army wants to be recognised as a legitimate revolutionary force, it must stop committing atrocities and be held accountable,” Ejaz Min Khant said.

Arakan Army accused of beheading, torture in Rakhine State

A new Fortify Rights investigation urges the ICC to probe war crimes against Rohingya civilians, citing abductions, mutilations, and killings by the ethnic armed group

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