Volunteers who worked on earthquake recovery efforts late at night were forcibly conscripted.49 There has been no let-up in junta airstrikes since the moment the earthquake struck. The regime’s temporary humanitarian ceasefire announced on 2 April and recently extended until the end of May has been widely denounced as non-existent.50According to the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), in the month following the earthquake the military launched at least 243 attacks, including 171 air strikes, with over 200 civilians reportedly killed. “Amidst so many crises around the world, the unbearable suffering of the people in Myanmar cannot be forgotten,” said High Commissioner Türk. Overview of the current Rakhine State context Meanwhile in Rakhine State the number of IDPs now stands at 570,000, including those displaced during past and present outbreaks of conflict between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army, as well as Rohingya confined to internment camps in central Rakhine State since 2012. As noted by UN Special Rapporteur Tom Andrews, the true figure is likely much higher.51 After 18 months of the trade blockade and severe humanitarian access restrictions in Rakhine State imposed by the regime, the impact on civilian populations has been devastating. More than 2 million people are facing starvation.52 Tom Andrews has recently described the situation as ‘an impending humanitarian catastrophe’.53 Rakhine State is heavily dependent on trade with central Myanmar for essential goods, but the regime’s trade blockade has caused severe shortages of all basic commodities, as well as skyrocketing prices. Some informal cross-border trade is taking place between Maungdaw township and Bangladesh, and between Kyauktaw township and India via the Kaladan river, which runs through AA-controlled Paletwa township in Chin State up to the Indian border. However, this is small scale and wholly inadequate to meet the needs of people in Rakhine State. The regime has also shut down banking services, leading to cash shortages. The telecommunications blackout means that it is very difficult for people in Rakhine State to receive remittances from family members abroad, which many depend on for their survival. Throughout the crisis – including in the aftermath of Cyclone Mocha in 2023 - the junta has consistently blocked humanitarian access, with denial of travel authorisations for humanitarian workers and heightened scrutiny at checkpoints commonplace in Rakhine State.54 The WFP’s funding shortfall is compounding an already dire food security situation for Rohingya communities, with many already starving. Many Rohingya communities are almost entirely dependent on international humanitarian assistance for their survival. The conditions of life inflicted on the Rohingya group in Rakhine State by the military regime leave them uniquely vulnerable in the context of armed conflict in the region. Restrictions on their freedom of movement make it extremely difficult for Rohingya to flee. The particular impacts on the Rohingya group of the regime’s trade blockade and severe humanitarian access restrictions are examined in the context of the provisional measures 49 New York Times (7 April 2025) op. cit., OHCHR, ‘Myanmar: Military actions compound dire humanitarian situation in aftermath of deadly earthquake’ (4 April 2025) available at <https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2025/04/myanmarmilitary-actions-compound-dire-humanitarian-situation-aftermath> accessed 16 May 2025. 50 The Diplomat, ‘Myanmar Military Announces Further Extension of Earthquake Ceasefire’ (7 May 2025) available at <https://thediplomat.com/2025/05/myanmar-military-announces-further-extension-of-earthquake-ceasefire/> accessed 16 May 2025. 51 UNHRC, ‘Report of the Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar (12 March 2025)’ UNDOC ref A/HRC/58/64 8[36]. 52 UNDP, (November 2024) op. cit. 1. 53 UNHRC, (12 March 2025) op. cit. 9 [45]. 54 UNOCHA, ‘Myanmar: Humanitarian Update No. 44’ (19 February 2025) 3. 10