Arakan Army dismisses junta claims of defections in Ayeyarwady as fabricated propaganda

By Admin 31 Jul 2026

DMG Newsroom

31 July 2026, Mrauk-U

Claims by the military junta that 20 members of the Arakan Army surrendered with weapons during intense fighting in Ayeyarwady Region are false and fabricated propaganda, according to Arakan Army spokesperson U Khaing Thukha.

The military junta announced on July 29 that 20 Arakan Army members and 12 People's Defence Force (PDF) members surrendered with weapons and ammunition and were handed over to their parents at the Southwestern Regional Military Command in Pathein, Ayeyarwady Region, as heavy fighting continues along the border between Arakan State and Ayeyarwady Region.

Responding to the junta's claims, U Khaing Thukha said the military had arrested travelling Arakanese youths and tortured them to stage a propaganda campaign aimed at misleading the public.

"There is absolutely no such incident of our members surrendering or handing over weapons to the terrorist military regime," U Khaing Thukha said. "This is likely a fabricated narrative staged by the junta by unlawfully arresting, torturing, and coercing travelling Arakanese youths to lie and mislead the public, or they may be using Arakanese soldiers within their own military to create propaganda."

After capturing Gwa Township in Arakan State, the Arakan Army expanded its offensive into Ayeyarwady Region, seizing major strategic hilltop outposts and at least five junta positions in Yekyi Township.

It was during these clashes that the military junta claimed 20 Arakan Army fighters and 12 PDF members had surrendered with their weapons.

U Khaing Thukha added that junta troops on the battlefield are experiencing low morale, resulting in frequent surrenders and desertions to the Arakan Army, either individually or in groups.

"On the ground, troops of the terrorist military regime are suffering from low morale, frequently deserting in groups or individually to surrender to us with their weapons," U Khaing Thukha said. "We have also captured numerous junta soldiers who fled aimlessly from the battlefield."

In its July 29 statement, the junta claimed the alleged Arakan Army defectors included four from Gwa Township, one from Minbya Township, six from Thandwe Township, one from Ramree Township, two from Myebon Township, and one from Taungup Township in Arakan State; three from Paletwa Township in Chin State; and one each from Kyaiklat and Laymyethna townships in Ayeyarwady Region.

The regime also claimed the 12 PDF members comprised 11 men and one woman, including two each from Yekyi, Pathein and Danubyu townships, three from Laymyethna Township, one from Ingapu Township in Ayeyarwady Region, and one each from Insein and Dagon Seikkan townships in Yangon Region.

The junta further claimed that firearms, hand grenades and other military equipment were surrendered along with the alleged defectors.

The military junta is currently conducting large-scale counter-offensives supported by continuous airstrikes and heavy artillery shelling in an attempt to retake lost positions in Ayeyarwady Region, with daily clashes reported in Yekyi and Thabaung townships.

In March, the junta similarly claimed that 506 members of the Ta'ang National Liberation Army (TNLA), the Arakan Army, the NUG-aligned PDF and other resistance groups had surrendered with weapons during a ceremony held at Central Command in Mandalay.