Arakan Army fighters first opened fire on unarmed civilians fleeing Hoyyar Siri village as they walked towards Buthidaung town. Kobir Ahmed was in the middle of the group with his wife and their three young children when the shooting started. “First, my son was hit by a bullet. Then my wife and baby daughter were shot, followed by my other daughter. My wife and elder daughter were hit in the chest. My wife had fallen beside me. After being shot, she whispered to me for nearly a minute,” he told Human Rights Watch. “After about a minute, she stopped whispering.” Kobir Ahmed fled to Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh. He has been unable to return home.
© 2026 John Holmes for Human Rights Watch