Myanmar’s military junta has drawn international condemnation after arresting a six-year-old girl along with 15 others in connection with the assassination of a retired army general and former diplomat, sparking renewed outrage over its treatment of civilians and children.
The arrests were reported Friday by the junta-controlled Global New Light of Myanmar, which labeled the group, including the child, as “terrorists.” The child is reportedly the daughter of the alleged gunman.
The killing of Cho Htun Aung, 68—a retired brigadier general and former ambassador—occurred in broad daylight on May 22 in Yangon, Myanmar’s largest city. His assassination is one of the most high-profile since the military seized power in a 2021 coup that plunged the country into widespread conflict.
According to the junta, those arrested are affiliated with the Golden Valley Warriors, a resistance group that claimed responsibility for the assassination. The group reportedly accused Cho Htun Aung of supporting ongoing military offensives against civilians. The military also alleges the assassin was paid 200,000 Myanmar Kyat (about $95), and claims the group receives support from the National Unity Government (NUG), an opposition coalition formed by ousted lawmakers and pro-democracy groups.
A spokesperson for the NUG, Nay Phone Latt, dismissed the allegations. “It is not true that we are paying people to kill other people,” he said.
The junta’s decision to arrest a young child, and the subsequent circulation of her image—partially blurred in official media but visible on other pro-junta platforms—has triggered widespread outrage from human rights groups and international observers.
Since the February 2021 coup that removed the democratically elected government of Aung San Suu Kyi, Myanmar has spiraled into a protracted civil conflict. Resistance groups, including ethnic militias and newly formed armed factions, have expanded operations and carried out guerrilla-style attacks in urban areas like Yangon.
Human rights organizations estimate that over 29,000 people have been arrested by the regime since the coup, including more than 600 children. The Assistance Association for Political Prisoners (AAPP) reports that at least 6,700 civilians have been killed to date—among them 825 children and 1,646 women.
The arrest of a child in a politically charged case further underscores the regime’s growing use of collective punishment and its continued crackdown on dissent, even as international pressure mounts for accountability and a return to civilian rule.
