"On 25 August 2017 , violence dramatically escalated in northern Arakan/Rakhine State, after insurgents staged a major coordinated attack against security forces outposts. The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) claimed responsibility for the offensive, in order to ?liberate our people from dehumanized oppression perpetrated by all successive Burmese regimes”. The ensuing military clearance operations killed hundreds of people and forced over 507,000 civilians from all communities to flee their homes. Independent reports documented that "operations" mostly involved the Tatmadaw indiscriminately burning Rohingya villages and opening fire on their residents, with some instances of villagers joining the militants to fight the security forces. UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Zeid Ra?ad Al Hussein declared ?[t]his turn of events is deplorable. It was predicted and could have been prevented”. He noted that ?decades of persistent and systematic human rights violations, including the very violent security responses to the attacks since October 2016 [see Escalation of violence], have almost certainly contributed to the nurturing of violent extremism, with everyone ultimately losing”. The latest wave of deadly violence in Arakan State did not happen overnight. Independent accounts, including a flash report issued by the Office of the UN High Commissioner on Human Rights (OHCHR) on 3 February 2017, showed that, since 9 October 2016, the Tatmadaw has targeted Rohingya with ?unprecedented” violence. Burmese authorities, including military Commander-in-Chief Sr Gen Min Aung Hlaing and State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi, have repeatedly denied the accusations of human rights violations [see Government "terrorist ” narrative]. The outbreak of violence took place just hours after the Advisory Commission on Rakhine State ? also known as Annan Commission ? released its final report, jeopardizing the implementation of its recommendations. The Annan Commission - inaugurated on 5 September 2016 at the behest of Aung San Suu Kyi and chaired by former UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan ? was mandated with providing recommendations to secure peace and prosperity in Arakan State. Its final report, which did not name the Rohingya at Aung San Suu Kyi?s request, urged Burma to eliminate all restrictions on the people?s ability to gain citizenship, move free ly and participate in politics..."