AA denies killing Muslims in Buthidaung Twsp

By Admin 12 Aug 2025

DMG Newsroom

12 August 2025, Buthidaung

The Arakan Army (AA) has denied allegations that its troops were responsible for killing hundreds of Muslims in Htan Shauk Khan Village in Buthidaung Township, Arakan State, which Rohingya activists and human rights groups have accused the ethnic armed group of perpetrating.

The AA's denial was in response to an Arakan Rohingya National Council (ARNC) statement in the first week of August, along with photographs, claiming that the AA had killed about 600 Muslims, including children and pregnant women from Htan Shauk Khan Village in May 2023.

"These allegations are baseless and fabricated by a group of people who are just doing their job," said U Khaing Thukha, spokesperson for the AA, at an online press conference on August 11.

"There was a fierce battle in Htan Shauk Khan Village for three days. During that time, at least 200 soldiers from the Myanmar military regime were killed. That is why there are bodies found there, and the situation is like this."

According to U Khaing Thukha, during the fighting near the junta's Military Operation Command No. 15 in Buthidaung, the military regime retreated to Htan Shauk Khan Village and prepared a defensive position through that village, where fighting intensified.

U Khaing Thukha said the skeletons in the photos shared by the Muslim activists included bulletproof vests and the footwear of junta soldiers.

"Look carefully at the allegations and the photos. The helmets worn by junta soldiers, and the combat boots on the skeletons of the dead, are evidence. The alleged photos are of the bodies of soldiers who fell on the side of the military regime," he said.

Regarding the matter, AA officials visited Htan Shauk Khan Village and interviewed the village head. The population of Htan Shauk Khan Village before the fighting was 993 and currently is 791, U Khaing Thukha said.

When AA officials asked the village head about the reason for the population decline, U Khaing Thukha said some villagers had fled to various areas, including refugee camps in Bangladesh, Yangon, and overseas.

"I know that AA will never admit to this massacre," Nay San Lwin, chairman of the Arakan Rohingya National Council, told Myanmar Pressphoto Agency (MPA). "There are people who survived the massacre with many injuries. There are people who watched the massacre. There are people who took pictures of the places where the bodies were piled up. The evidence is overwhelming. Although AA is denying it now, at some point they will have to take responsibility for this incident."

The AA has invited media to visit Htan Shauk Khan Village to report on the incident, but will allow them to do so depending on the security situation.

The Arakan Army has been frequently accused of committing human rights abuses, mass killings, and even genocide against Muslim ethnic groups during battles for control of Buthidaung and Maungdaw.

On May 17, 2024, a day before Buthidaung fell to the AA, Rohingya activists U Tun Khin, Nay San Lwin, and National Unity Government Deputy Minister for Human Rights U Aung Kyaw Moe accused the AA of committing human rights violations against Muslims.

"The battles for control of Buthidaung and Maungdaw were very sensitive for the AA," said a man who monitors the military situation in Arakan State. "Especially in the battles near Muslim villages, there were a lot of accusations about who did what and who did what. I think the accusations from the main diaspora Muslim activists will be another problem for the AA to deal with.

"Fortify Rights on July 23 alleged that the AA had committed war crimes against Muslims, including abductions, torture, and killings, and urged the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate the ethnic armed group's conduct. The AA denies those allegations as well.