UN mission urges financial isolation of Myanmar’s military over human rights abuses

An international fact-finding mission is urging that countries cut off all business with Myanmar’s military as part of efforts to hold the army accountable for human rights abuses.

The UN Human Rights Council said in a statement on Tuesday that there has been no progress toward resolving the crisis over Myanmar’s mostly Muslim Rohingya minority, more than 1 million of whom have fled military “clearance operations” in the northwest Rakhine region.

The statement issued in Geneva said the situation was at a standstill.

Myanmar authorities have razed deserted Rohingya villages and those remaining in the country live in displacement camps and in fear.

It said the international community needs to identify and cut off the military’s supplies of funding. It also faulted armed ethnic groups for committing human rights abuses.