Junta blockade leaves about 400 civilians stranded on Maday Island

By Admin 10 Jun 2026

DMG Newsroom

10 June 2026, Kyaukphyu

Around 400 civilians, including internally displaced persons (IDPs), patients and students, have been stranded on Maday Island in Kyaukphyu Township due to a military blockade imposed by junta forces, according to local sources.

Those affected include residents from Kyaukphyu, Ramree, Ann, Taungup and Thandwe townships. Students who travelled home during school holidays are also unable to return to classes in Kyaukphyu Town.

"Roughly 400 displaced people and patients in need of medical treatment in Kyaukphyu or other areas of Myanmar are trapped on Maday Island," a local resident told DMG. "Some have been stranded for months. Since fighting intensified near Sanae Town, junta forces have blocked all travel routes. Patients, students and displaced people are all affected."

Junta naval and ground forces have imposed strict restrictions on water transportation, preventing civilian boats from entering or leaving Maday Island and nearby waterways.

Residents said the blockade has caused food prices and the cost of basic commodities to rise sharply, creating additional hardship for those stranded on the island.

Although the General Administration Department (GAD) recently approved travel permits for a limited number of people, local sources said most of those allowed to leave were junta employees and their family members.

Residents also reported growing concerns over increased security checks and interrogations by personnel from the nearby Danyawadi Naval Base.

"The GAD is not issuing permits for people to enter Kyaukphyu Town, leaving displaced families stranded," another resident said. "We cannot travel onward, and we cannot return home. Just yesterday, the military announced that no civilian boats would be allowed to dock at ports on Maday Island."

Fighting in Kyaukphyu Township has intensified since mid-May, with clashes reported between the Arakan Army (AA) and junta forces in areas between Sanae Town and the Taung Maw Gyi naval station.

Maday Island, located in the Thanzit River estuary near the Bay of Bengal, is a strategically important site for the China-Myanmar energy project.

The island is home to about 3,000 residents living in five villages. It hosts oil storage facilities and deep-water terminals built by the China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), where crude oil is unloaded and transported through pipelines to Kunming in China's Yunnan Province. Natural gas is also transported through a parallel pipeline network.