The International Criminal Court (ICC) should investigate alleged war crimes by the Arakan Army (AA) in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, rights group Fortify Rights said Thursday. The call comes after the release of graphic video footage showing AA soldiers and armed men executing two captives.
The videos, which surfaced online in late December and January, depict AA members cutting and hacking the throats of two detainees near a shallow dirt pit. Fortify Rights has analyzed the footage and deemed it authentic but could not verify the exact location.
“Torturing and summarily executing civilians or captured enemy soldiers are war crimes,” said Ejaz Min Khant, a Human Rights Associate at Fortify Rights. “Captured soldiers must be treated with dignity under the Geneva Conventions, and those responsible must be prosecuted.”
The footage reveals eight armed men—some in military dress and others in civilian clothing—abusing and taunting the captives before forcing them to kneel. The videos suggest orders for the execution may have come from an AA commander, raising questions of command responsibility, according to Fortify Rights.
Dialogue in the recordings indicates the captives may have been Myanmar junta soldiers. However, their identities remain unverified.
The AA has previously stated its commitment to investigating and prosecuting war crimes, but the group has faced accusations of atrocities, including a massacre of over 100 Rohingya civilians in August 2024.
Fortify Rights has urged the ICC to act using jurisdiction granted by Myanmar’s National Unity Government in 2021 under the Rome Statute. The group also called on ICC member states to refer Myanmar’s situation to the court’s Chief Prosecutor for broader accountability.
The ICC has limited jurisdiction in Myanmar, covering crimes related to the forced deportation of Rohingya into Bangladesh in 2017. In November 2024, the ICC sought an arrest warrant for junta leader Senior General Min Aung Hlaing for his role in those events.
Under international humanitarian law, including the Geneva Conventions and the Rome Statute, summary executions and torture are prohibited and constitute war crimes. Fortify Rights emphasized the need for accountability to address ongoing atrocities in Myanmar.
 should investigate alleged war crimes by the Arakan Army (AA) in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, rights group Fortify Rights said Thursday.){kind=link}