Myanmar civil war death toll passes 100,000 after five years of fighting

The conflict that erupted after the 2021 military coup in Myanmar has now killed over 100,000 people, according to the armed‑conflict tracker ACLED, which recorded 100,114 deaths. The war has displaced more than 3.7 million residents and left one in five people facing food insecurity. Over 1,200 armed groups are active, making the conflict the most fragmented in the world. In February 2024 the junta introduced forced conscription, drafting roughly 50,000 civilians; a 20‑year‑old deserter said, "These conscripts are sent to death. If you don’t die in one place, they send you elsewhere." The fighting has spread nationwide, with air strikes supplied by Russia and China targeting schools, clinics and prisons. China’s backing helped the army regain ground after rebel offensives in late 2023. The war also fuels drug trafficking in border regions, financing both sides, and has driven refugees into camps in Thailand and Bangladesh. Survivors in central Myit Chay describe a "generation decimated" as families mourn lost children and spouses.