United Nations investigators have concluded that Myanmar’s security forces are carrying out systematic torture in military-run detention facilities and have identified senior commanders responsible. In an annual report released on 12 August, the Independent Investigative Mechanism for Myanmar (IIMM) said victims were subjected to beatings, electric shocks, strangulation, gang rape, burning of sexual body parts and the removal of fingernails, with some cases ending in death. Covering the period from 1 July 2024 to 30 June 2025, the report draws on evidence from more than 1,300 sources, including nearly 600 eyewitness testimonies, photographs, documents and forensic material. Children—often detained in place of missing relatives—were among those tortured. Investigators said they have made “important progress” in linking the abuses to high-level commanders who oversee detention sites, although the names of those individuals were withheld pending further inquiries. The findings add to a growing body of evidence of atrocities since the February 2021 coup, which has plunged the country into civil war and led to the arrest of tens of thousands of people. The IIMM is also examining air-force strikes on schools, homes and hospitals, and continues to collect material on crimes against the Rohingya and other communities for use by courts such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. However, the mechanism warned that UN liquidity pressures have cut its 2025 budget to 73 percent of the approved level and could force a 20 percent reduction in regular-budget staff next year, potentially hampering future accountability efforts.