Deadly Airstrike Destroys Hospital in Mrauk-U, Myanmar

Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF) said on Wednesday that an airstrike destroyed Mrauk-U General Hospital in Myanmar’s Rakhine state, marking the deadliest attack on a healthcare facility in the country since 2021.

The strike hit the hospital at around 9:00 p.m. on 10 December, killing at least 30 civilians and injuring more than 70 others, according to initial reports. The victims included patients and healthcare workers, among them elderly people, long-term care patients, and dozens of children. Many survivors suffered severe injuries.

“It is difficult to convey how outraged MSF is by the attack on one of the few remaining functioning medical facilities in the area,” said Paul Brockmann, MSF’s operations manager for Myanmar, Bangladesh, and Malaysia. “Bombs hit a hospital, and patients died in their beds. No one can describe this as collateral damage. Hospitals must remain safe places for people who need medical care.”

MSF said it mourns the patients who died at the hospital, which the organization had supported for years, and stands with medical colleagues who worked there.

“The loss of one of the last operational hospitals in central Rakhine will further limit access to healthcare, including life-saving treatment, for civilians caught in the fighting,” Brockmann said.

Ongoing conflict has sharply reduced access to healthcare across Rakhine state. Fighting has damaged many medical facilities and forced large numbers of health workers to flee. Similar attacks have occurred across Myanmar, where the country ranked fourth globally for attacks on healthcare in 2024, according to MSF.

As a neutral medical humanitarian organization, MSF urged all parties to the conflict to respect international humanitarian law.

“All sides must protect civilians and medical facilities without exception as violence continues to escalate,” Brockmann said.