UN links Myanmar's human rights collapse to illicit rare-earth mining that feeds global supply chains

The UN Human Rights Office reported on August 25, 2026, that Myanmar's human rights situation has hit a new low, with Rohingya facing killings, torture, forced recruitment, and forced labor. OHCHR ties the violence to illicit rare-earth mining that funds the armed groups responsible. Those minerals feed critical global supply chains, leaving policymakers caught between disrupting a war economy and protecting technology manufacturing access.