Ask Onix
Civilians flee as military launches offensive
Residents of Myanmar's Chin State describe terror as airstrikes and ground assaults force thousands from their homes in the weeks leading up to national elections.
Night of explosions and fear
Iang Za Kim was jolted awake by explosions in a nearby village late last month. Fighter jets roared overhead as smoke billowed into the sky. Grabbing only food and clothing, she and her neighbors fled into the surrounding jungle, convinced the military would target them next.
"We were terrified," she recalls, her voice trembling. "We ran so we wouldn't be forced to vote."
Election fears compound crisis
Many displaced civilians say they refuse to participate in the junta's upcoming elections, slated to begin on December 28. They fear arrest or torture if they resist voting or support opposition parties. "If we're caught and refuse, they'll jail and torture us," Iang says.
The military seized power in a February 2021 coup, nullifying the landslide victory of Aung San Suu Kyi's National League for Democracy (NLD). Most NLD leaders, including Suu Kyi, remain imprisoned, and the party is barred from contesting the vote. Critics call the election a sham designed to legitimize military rule.
Attacks on schools and hospitals
The Chin Human Rights Organisation reports that since mid-September, junta airstrikes have hit three schools and six churches in Chin State, killing 12 people, including six children. The BBC verified one attack on October 13 in Vanha village, where two students-Johan Phun Lian Cung, 7, and Zing Cer Mawi, 12-died during a bombing that injured over a dozen others.
In Rakhine State, south of Chin, rebels say a junta strike on a hospital last week killed at least 30 people and wounded more than 70. The military has not responded to allegations of civilian targeting.
Displacement and despair
Thousands have sought refuge in India's Mizoram state, including Iang and a group now sheltering in a dilapidated badminton court in Vaphai village. Their few belongings are packed in plastic sacks, donated by local Indian villagers.
Ral Uk Thang, 80, fled his home for the second time since the coup. "We're afraid of our own government," he says. "They arrest, torture, and burn homes. They're extremely cruel."
Bawi Nei Lian, displaced twice since 2021, struggles to describe the pain of leaving his rebuilt home. "We had to choose between staying and dying," he says. "The military claims this election is free and fair, but how can that be true when the main opposition party isn't even allowed to run?"
Rebels fight back amid heavy losses
At a Chin National Front base in Myanmar's forested mountains, Vice Chairman Sui Khar describes the junta's offensive as the fiercest in three years. Hundreds of soldiers are advancing from four directions, backed by airstrikes, artillery, and drones.
In the base's hospital, young fighters-many barely adults-recover from amputations and severe injuries. Abel, 18, lost his right leg and suffered hand wounds during a battle to reclaim territory. Nearby, Si Si Maung, 19, recounts stepping on a landmine before an airstrike hit his unit. "I've lost a leg, but I'd give my life for future generations," he says.
Hope fades for democracy
Despite rebel gains, elderly civilians like Ral Uk Thang doubt they'll live to see democracy restored. "I hope my grandchildren will," he says. "But the junta only serves its leaders. Under Suu Kyi, we tasted democracy. Now, we only cry."
"This election is just to prolong military dictatorship. It's not about the people's choice."
Sui Khar, Chin National Front Vice Chairman
