U.S. imposes sanctions on Myanmar’s military

The United States on Friday imposed sanctions on four Myanmar military and police commanders and two army units, accusing them of “ethnic cleansing” against Rohingya Muslims and widespread human rights abuses across the Southeast Asian nation.

The sanctions by the Treasury Department marked the toughest U.S. action so far in response to Myanmar’s crackdown on the Rohingya minority, which started last year and has driven more than 700,000 people into neighboring Bangladesh and left thousands of dead behind.

But the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump did not target the highest levels of Myanmar’s military and also stopped short of calling the anti-Rohingya campaign crimes against humanity or genocide, which has been the subject of debate within the U.S. government.

The measures were announced as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, according to U.S. officials, prepares to issue the findings of an intensive U.S. investigation of alleged atrocities by Myanmar authorities against the Rohingya in Rakhine state.

The release of the report, compiled from interviews at refugee camps in Bangladesh, is expected to be around the Aug. 25 one-year anniversary of the bloody crackdown.

“Burmese security forces have engaged in violent campaigns against ethnic minority communities across Burma, including ethnic cleansing, massacres, sexual assault, extrajudicial killings, and other serious human rights abuses,” said Treasury Under Secretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence, Sigal Mandelker, using an alternative name for Myanmar.

“Treasury is sanctioning units and leaders overseeing this horrific behavior as part of a broader U.S. government strategy to hold accountable those responsible for such wide-scale human suffering,” Mandelker said. The sanctions were imposed on military commanders Aung Kyaw Zaw, Khin Maung Soe and Khin Hlaing and border police commander Thura San Lwin, in addition to the 33rd and 99th Light Infantry Divisions. The measures call for freezes of any U.S. assets the individuals hold, a prohibition on Americans doing business with them as well as bans on travel to the United States.

A Reuters special report in June gave a comprehensive account of the roles played by the two infantry divisions in the offensive against the Rohingya.

The military in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, also known as Burma, has denied accusations of ethnic cleansing and says its actions were part of a fight against terrorism.

The Myanmar Embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Critics have accused Trump of being slow in his response to the Rohingya crisis. Human rights groups noted that while Friday’s sanctions list included generals, Myanmar’s powerful army chief, Min Aung Hlaing, was spared.

Rich Weir, Myanmar researcher at Human Rights Watch, called the sanctions “an important but long overdue step.”

“The avoidance of the top military leaders is striking,” he added. “The likelihood that they did not know what was happening is close to infinitesimal.”