AA chief vows to ‘eliminate’ junta and its allies in Maungdaw

By Admin 16 Aug 2024

DMG Newsroom
16 August 2024, Maungdaw

Arakkha Army (AA) chief Twan Mrat Naing has vowed to crush the junta troops defending Maungdaw Town from an ongoing AA onslaught.

On Friday, he wrote on the social media site X, formerly Twitter: “The militant terrorists of SAC [the State Administration Council, as the regime prefers to be known] and their affiliates are still largely resisting from within the buildings in town. We will continue our mission to liberate the town and eliminate all evil forces.”

Muslim conscripts and Muslim armed groups such as the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, Arakan Rohingya Solidarity Organization and Arakan Rohingya Army are fighting alongside the regime in northern Arakan State, including Maungdaw Township.

The AA chief also alleged: “Some unscrupulous, brazen activists with potential links to militant Orgs, who are loosing [sic] ground in the field day by day, are clamorously spreading manipulated facts blended with plausible untruths in the media.”

“The Maungdaw battle is complicated, mainly because Muslim armed groups are fighting alongside the regime,” one observer said. “Some Muslim residents have also joined hands with the regime. So, when Muslims suffered casualties on the ground, [some activists] accused on social media that the AA was responsible. Perhaps, this is why the AA chief has issued the warning.”

Fighting has further intensified in and around Maungdaw Town recently as the AA is attacking the junta’s Border Guard Police Battalion No. 5, the last junta battalion defending the town, according to sources on the ground.

The two sides clashed repeatedly during much of Thursday, and the regime carried out bombing raids, said sources. Civilian casualties have been reported in Maungdaw as a result.

Junta troops and allies have also torched empty villages, witnesses told DMG. They reportedly torched a Muslim Village called Maung Ni, near Maungdaw Town, on Thursday night.

The AA says it has rescued thousands of residents trapped by the fighting in Maungdaw Town and nearby villages.