Arakan Bay News-ABN English Edition, Lam Ma Gree, Sittwe (2025)

17/07/2025

Exchange of Gunfire Between Rakhine Armed Group and Bangladeshi Government Forces; One Officer and One Soldier Seriously Injured

AB News – July 17, 2025
By Nwel Soe

An exchange of gunfire occurred on July 15 between members of the Rakhine armed group known as the Mog Party and Bangladeshi government troops in Banghalia village, Rajashahi Township, Rangamati District, Bangladesh. According to Hill Voice news outlet, a Bangladeshi army officer and a soldier were seriously injured in the clash.

The two injured individuals have been identified as Officer Azmat Hossain and Nasir Uddin, a soldier.
The incident reportedly took place at a tax collection site run by the Mog Party in Banghalia. According to Hill Voice, the confrontation stemmed from disputes over tax collection and the distribution of funds.

Bangladeshi military officer Azmat Hossain and five soldiers arrived at the Mog Party’s tax collection point in Banghalia. A verbal altercation broke out between the soldiers and Mog Party members who were on duty at the site, which escalated into armed conflict. As a result, one officer and one soldier were seriously injured.

It is reported that Officer Azmat Hossain was initially taken by Mog Party members to one of their camps and later transferred to the Banghalia Naval Base.

Additionally, reports suggest that two other soldiers were subjected to assault. In response, a Bangladeshi military unit, including a senior officer and several troops, arrived in Banghalia village in four vehicles. However, by then, Mog Party members had already fled the scene.

Prior to this incident, on April 1, a group of 12 to 15 individuals posing as Mog Party representatives were allegedly collecting fake taxes from local residents, beating people, and issuing threats in parts of Rajashahi Township, as reported by Hill Voice.

16/07/2025

Arakan People's Revolutionary Government Provides Seed Support to Farmers in Maungdaw District

AB News – July 15, 2025
By: Chandra

In Maungdaw District of Rakhine State, particularly in Buthidaung and Maungdaw areas, the Agriculture and Administrative Departments of the Arakan People's Revolutionary Government have reportedly distributed seeds to local farmers.

According to sources, the seed distribution began in June, and on June 19, seeds were provided to all farmers in Buthidaung — including Muslim farmers.

A farmer from Buthidaung told AB News, “AA provided us with seeds. They gave them to every farmer who planned to work on the land. Now, they are also selling fertilizers to us at lower prices,” he said.

Farmers stated that the Agriculture Department under the Arakan People's Revolutionary Government is selling fertilizers at reduced prices compared to the market rate.

Currently, in local markets across the Arakan region, a bag of fertilizer costs up to 250,000 kyats.

However, it is reported that the agriculture department is selling a bag of Bangladeshi fertilizer for 125,000 kyats and Indian fertilizer for 135,000 kyats.

A farmer from Kyauktaw told AB News, “We are grateful to the ULA/AA for selling fertilizer at these affordable prices. Rice prices are low, and many farmers like us are operating at a loss. Still, if we don’t farm, we fear starvation, so we have no choice but to keep working.”

There are around 1.2 million acres of farmland in Rakhine, but this year only around 500,000 acres are reportedly being cultivated.

16/07/2025

AA Invites Forced Recruits from Junta to Defect and Join the Resistance

AB News – July 15, 2025

The Arakan Army (ULA/AA) has issued a public call inviting youth and young adults across Myanmar—who have been forcibly conscripted by the junta—to defect and join the resistance side.

In its statement, the AA said:

“Forcibly conscripted soldiers who are suffering various forms of abuse under the terrorist military junta can defect to the Arakan Army at any time and at any location where AA forces are present. The AA guarantees the safety and security of all defectors who come over to the light.”

On the same day, July 15, the AA also announced that two junta soldiers from the Ann-Padan frontline had defected and joined its forces.

The two defectors were identified as:

Private Nay Lin Aung, ID No. PS/134981, from LIB 79 under Division 99, and
Private Aung Thet Htun, ID No. PS/127146, also from LIB 79 under Division 969.

The junta has been abusing the military conscription law by forcefully drafting youths and young adults into its army, reportedly to extend the life of its military dictatorship.

It is understood that many newly conscripted soldiers or civilian militias under junta control, who have been forcibly sent to frontline areas, lack the will to fight and are instead seeking opportunities to defect to nearby ethnic revolutionary forces.

The AA has reaffirmed that those who choose to defect can safely do so in areas where AA forces are present, and that the group assumes full responsibility for their protection and lives.

14/07/2025

Drone Misfire in Kyaukphyu Kills Around 10 Junta Soldiers

AB News – July 13, 2025
By Nwe Soe

In war-torn Kyaukphyu, a drone unit of the Myanmar military mistakenly targeted its own reinforcements, misidentifying them as Arakan Army (AA) fighters and launching a su***de drone strike that reportedly killed around 10 junta troops, according to AB News sources.

The incident occurred on July 12 near the front yard of a pagoda on Kyaukphyu Hill, in the Gon Chwein battle zone of Kyaukphyu Township. A ground-based military source told AB News that the drone unit mistakenly dropped over 20 bombs on its own side.

“The drone team mistook their own convoy for AA fighters and launched bombs—more than 20 were dropped. We believe around 10 soldiers were killed. Clashes in the Gon Chwein area are still ongoing,” the source said.

Due to the misfire, around 10 soldiers were reportedly killed, and some of the injured were taken to Kyaukphyu hospital for treatment.

Fierce clashes continue in Kyaukphyu between the AA and junta forces, with the military using airstrikes, naval attacks, and su***de drones in response.

Currently, fighting remains intense in areas surrounding Malagyun, Pyinsekan, and Katthapyay village where junta troops are stationed. The AA is reportedly launching offensives to gain control of Kyaukphyu, Sittwe, and Manaung, the last remaining towns under military control in the region.

13/07/2025

Explosion in Pauktaw: Young Woman Severely Injured by Heavy Weapon Fire from Sittwe

AB News - July 12, 2025
Nwe Soe

A young woman was seriously injured in Pauktaw due to heavy weapon fire from Sittwe, according to a military news source. The injured individual is 17-year-old Ma Myat Myat Soe, daughter of U Aung Hla Khaing from Min Tine village, Pauktaw Township.

Around 12:20 PM on July 12, 2025, the military council’s No. 12 Police Battalion in Sittwe fired heavy weapons three times toward Min Tine village, resulting in Ma Myat Myat Soe being hit by a projectile, the military source told AB News.

“At around noon, they fired three consecutive shots. The shells landed in the village. A young girl was severely injured. It was fired from Sittwe,” the source said.

Ma Myat Myat Soe was struck in her right hip and sustained severe injuries.

On July 10, 2025, an elderly man was also injured when the military council’s Battalion 908, located near Kyar Ma Thout village in Sittwe, fired heavy weapons toward Nyaung Pin Yin village in Ponnagyun Township.

13/07/2025

Hefazat Protests Against Opening of UN Human Rights Office in Dhaka

AB News – July 12, 2025

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh has strongly opposed the interim government's decision to open a United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) in Dhaka for a three-year term.

At a protest held yesterday, July 11, after Friday prayers near the north gate of Baitul Mukarram National Mosque, Hefazat’s Joint Secretary General and Dhaka City Secretary Maulana Mamunul Haque stated:

"Allowing international organizations to enter the country before justice is served for 16 years of extrajudicial killings, arbitrary arrests, and murders amounts to granting impunity to perpetrators and is a grave injustice to the people."

He further declared:

"No one has given the government the right to dig its own grave. We will not allow this UN human rights office to be opened in Dhaka."

Mamunul added that if the interim government does not immediately reverse its decision to open the UN human rights office in Dhaka, Hefazat-e-Islam would be pressured to mobilize nationwide protest actions.

Hefazat-e-Islam Bangladesh is a powerful Islamic fundamentalist group that emerged in Bangladesh in 2010.

12/07/2025

Two Escaped Soldiers Who Shot AA Security Guards in Maungdaw Recaptured in Buthidaung Township

July 12, 2025

In Arakan (Rakhine) State, during the Maungdaw town capture operations, two junta soldiers detained by the Arakan Army (AA) escaped after shooting two AA security personnel and were later recaptured in Buthidaung Township.

The two junta soldiers, who were among many captured by the AA during the Maungdaw offensive, reportedly shot and injured two AA security guards on July 8 using concealed pistols while on guard duty. They then fled with one gun and 20 bullets.

According to sources close to the AA, the two fugitives were recaptured near a Muslim village called Thayintawpyin in Buthidaung Township on July 10.

“One gun and more than 20 bullets were seized on July 8, and the AA managed to track them down and recapture them near Thayintawpyin village in Buthidaung Township on July 10,” a source close to AA members said.

During the battles in Maungdaw and Buthidaung, the AA captured thousands of junta troops. Among them, the AA had previously released hundreds of family members of the soldiers.

The Arakan Army fully captured Buthidaung on May 18, 2024, and later took complete control of Maungdaw on December 8, 2024.

As of now, excluding three towns—Sittwe, Kyaukphyu, and Mrauk-U—under junta control, the AA holds 15 townships in total, including Paletwa in Chin State.

Photo caption:
Maungdaw: The moment when the AA captured junta soldiers, including Major Thurein Tun, after the takeover of NKK-5 outpost.
(Photo: AA Info Desk - Archive)

11/07/2025

Arakkha Health Department Launches Basic Healthcare Training Courses

AB News - July 11, 2025
Nway Soe

The Arakkha Health Department (AHD) announced today, July 11, that it is conducting basic healthcare training courses aimed at providing accessible healthcare services to the people of Rakhine State and implementing public health initiatives.

These training programs are designed to benefit the people of Rakhine State, with the Public Health Supervisor (Level 2) course having commenced earlier this month.

Training Duration and Number of Trainees

The ongoing Public Health Supervisor (Level 2) course began on July 1, 2025, and will continue until February 28, 2026, spanning a total of eight months.

Approximately 100 trainees, both male and female, are participating in the first batch.

Upon completion, trainees will be awarded certificates, and based on the staffing needs of rural health centers, they will be appointed as Public Health Supervisors (Level 2), according to AHD’s announcement.

AHD aims to simultaneously provide education and employment opportunities for the youth of Arakan. In addition to the current courses, AHD plans to offer other public health-related training programs that will yield comprehensive benefits, depending on circumstances and available opportunities.

Under AHD’s Public Health Training Program, additional courses, including Public Health Supervisor (Level 1), will also be introduced in the future. Despite the human resource shortages within the AHD it is progressively implementing and developing its initiatives in collaboration with patriotic medical staff from Arakan and volunteer medical personnel from mainland Myanmar.

Currently, there is still a need for additional medical staff. AHD invites medical professionals of any ethnicity who are dedicated to serving the people of Arakan with compassion to join and work at the AHD.

Arakkha Health Department Launches Basic Healthcare Training Courses

AB News - July 11, 2025
Nway Soe

The Arakkha Health Department (AHD) announced today, July 11, that it is conducting basic healthcare training courses aimed at providing accessible healthcare services to the people of Rakhine State and implementing public health initiatives.

These training programs are designed to benefit the people of Rakhine State, with the Public Health Supervisor (Level 2) course having commenced earlier this month.

Training Duration and Number of Trainees

The ongoing Public Health Supervisor (Level 2) course began on July 1, 2025, and will continue until February 28, 2026, spanning a total of eight months.

Approximately 100 trainees, both male and female, are participating in the first batch.

Upon completion, trainees will be awarded certificates, and based on the staffing needs of rural health centers, they will be appointed as Public Health Supervisors (Level 2), according to AHD’s announcement.

AHD aims to simultaneously provide education and employment opportunities for the youth of Arakan. In addition to the current courses, AHD plans to offer other public health-related training programs that will yield comprehensive benefits, depending on circumstances and available opportunities.

Under AHD’s Public Health Training Program, additional courses, including Public Health Supervisor (Level 1), will also be introduced in the future. Despite the human resource shortages within the AHD it is progressively implementing and developing its initiatives in collaboration with patriotic medical staff from Arakan and volunteer medical personnel from mainland Myanmar.

Currently, there is still a need for additional medical staff. AHD invites medical professionals of any ethnicity who are dedicated to serving the people of Arakan with compassion to join and work at the AHD.

11/07/2025

out of 23 Resistance Groups Supported by AA Are Collaborating Militarily, Says ISP-Myanmar

The Arakan Army (AA) has been supporting 23 resistance armed groups, out of which eight are currently collaborating militarily with the AA, according to a statement released by the Institute for Strategy and Policy - Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar).

This information was published in ISP-Myanmar’s July 9th analysis titled “Oh... Northern Route… De Facto Rival Thrones in Rakhine State.”

The 23 armed resistance groups supported by AA include:

BPLA, DRPA, CDF-Kanpetlet, BNRA, YA, CDF-Matupi, CDF-Mindat, YDF, PDF Zoland, BA, CNDF, AYA POF, KNDF, MDF, BLDF, PIO/PIA, GZA, PRA, SF/SAF, ACDF, PLF, PRF, and CDF-Asho.

ISP-Myanmar stated that these groups are active in armed resistance across 61 towns throughout Myanmar.

Among them, PIO/PIA, GZA, PRA, SF/SAF, ACDF, PLF, PRF, and CDF-Asho are reportedly collaborating directly under AA’s military command, conducting operations in areas bordering Rakhine State—namely Chin, Magway, Bago, and Ayeyarwady regions.

The analysis notes:

“The Arakan Army (AA) is not only establishing a presence in the northeastern, southeastern, and western theaters of Myanmar’s conflict zones, but it is also the only ethnic armed organization (EAO) capable of extending influence deep into the Burmese heartland. Basing itself in Rakhine, the AA is uniquely positioned to launch operations into Ayeyarwady, Magway, and Bago.

AA provide training, weapons, and guidance to many emerging youth resistance groups, building a vast ‘big brother-little brother’ network. With a ‘talk less, act more’ approach, the AA has established the largest armed alliance network among EAOs.”

Photo Credit: AA Info Desk and ISP-Myanmar

11/07/2025

Three Brotherhood Alliance Opens New Hospital in Muse 105-Mile

AB News - July 10, 2025
By Nway Soe

The Arakan Army (AA), Myanmar National Democratic Alliance Army (MNDAA), and Ta’ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), part of the 1027 Operation alliance, opened a new hospital on July 8, 2025, in the Myanmar-China border trade zone at Muse Township, 105-Mile, according to reports.

The hospital was established in the former Food and Drug Administration (FDA) office, seized from the military junta, with construction costs jointly funded by the three allied groups. The 105-Mile trade zone, controlled by the Three Brotherhood Alliance during the 1027 Operation, is just over 7 miles from Muse town, which remains under junta control.

Currently, the public hospital in Muse town continues to operate under junta administration with staff functioning as usual, according to local residents.

Meanwhile, the MNDAA, which had to transfer control of Lashio town back to the junta, relocated equipment from Lashio’s main hospital to Theinni town and is expanding hospitals in Theinni and Laukkai, reports indicate.

11/07/2025

Bangladesh Court Remands ARSA Leader for 3 Days

AB News - July 9, 2025
By Nway Soe

The ARSA leader Ataullah, arrested by Bangladesh police, was brought to the Cox’s Bazar court on July 9, 2025, and remanded for 3 days before being sent back to prison, according to The Business Standard.

Ataullah, the detained ARSA leader, faces charges related to the deaths of four Muslim refugees during a clash between armed Muslim groups ARSA and RSO on October 6, 2024, at the Kutupalong refugee camp.

The ARSA leader was brought from Cox’s Bazar district prison to the court under tight security, and after being granted a 3-day remand, he was returned to prison, as stated by the investigating officer (IO). The CID police stated that Ataullah will be interrogated at any time in connection with the murder case, according to the court’s investigating officer.

On March 17, 2025, Bangladesh authorities arrested Ataullah, the ARSA leader, along with five other members. According to a June 19, 2025, report by the International Crisis Group, the armed Muslim groups ARSA and RSO have been recruiting new members within the Cox’s Bazar refugee camp in Bangladesh to attack the Arakan Army (AA).

On June 8, 2025, Cox’s Bazar News reported live coverage showing hundreds of Muslim refugees, including young people wearing uniforms with ARSA’s emblem, at the Cox’s Bazar coastline.

11/07/2025

On July 7, 2025, the Chin National Army (CNA), under the Chin National Front (CNF), reportedly attacked and seized the headquarters of the Chin National Organization (CNO) and its armed wing, the Chin National Defence Force (CNDF), which is a member of the Chin Brotherhood Alliance. This occurred on July 6, according to reports from Chin media.

Due to territorial disputes and military tensions between the CNO/CNDF and the CDF-Hualngoram, efforts were made to resolve the conflict through negotiation rather than military means. On July 6, representatives and members of the CNA, an ally of CDF-Hualngoram, arrived at Leilek village in Falam Township to hold discussions. The CNDF hosted the visitors with a meal, including a pig, and after negotiations, the CNA members left the village by vehicle, as reported by local residents.

However, after departing Leilek village, the CNA members reportedly disembarked from their vehicles outside the village and proceeded on foot through a jungle path to the CNDF headquarters. Locals claim that around midday, CNA forces began firing and seized the CNDF headquarters.

On July 5, the CNDF had captured Rikhawdar town on the India-Myanmar border, where CNA forces were also stationed. Some supporters of the Chin revolutionary groups suggest that the CNA's attack on the CNDF headquarters was a retaliatory move due to this capture.

Regarding the incident, CNA spokesperson Salai Htet Ni told the media on the morning of July 7 that while their forces were passing the CNDF headquarters gate en route to Rih, a firefight broke out, and the CNDF forces fled.

The Chin Brotherhood Alliance has urged other external revolutionary armed groups to avoid military interference in the ongoing conflict between HPO/CDF-Hualngoram and CNO/CNDF, warning that such involvement could escalate the situation, leading to increased bloodshed.

The alliance stated that if external armed groups intervene with military support rather than peaceful means, the Chin Brotherhood, including CNO/CNDF, would firmly stand together. This position was outlined in a statement released by the Chin Brotherhood on July 3.

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