Tension escalates near Sittwe as junta shelling wounds Ponnagyun resident

By Admin 28 Oct 2025

DMG Newsroom

28 October 2025, Ponnagyun

Artillery fire by junta battalions in Sittwe reportedly struck parts of Arakan State's Ponnagyun Township on October 27, injuring a local resident.

Heavy weapons fired by battalions under the Myanmar military's Western Command landed near the Ponnagyun railway station and in the villages of Yarchaung and Taungpauk, residents said.

"Artillery shells fired by junta battalions exploded near the railway station in Ponnagyun and two nearby villages, wounding a local resident," said a man from Yarchaung Village.

DMG continues to verify details of casualties from the artillery attacks. Villagers said ongoing shelling has forced residents of the affected and nearby communities to flee for safety.

Junta regiments in Sittwe have been shelling civilian areas continuously since October 26, according to local sources.

Military sources said that beginning around 9 a.m. on October 28, junta battalions in Sittwe again fired heavy artillery, prompting the Arakan Army (AA) to return fire.

"There is gunfire almost every day. There is no direct fighting between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army - only exchanges of fire between the two sides," a military source told DMG.

Maung Htay Aung Hein, the youngest member of the Phyusin Yinkhwin Foundation, a charitable group based in Ponnagyun Township, was reportedly killed in a junta drone attack on October 26. Locals said he was struck while traveling to Kuntaung Village to transport a patient.

The Myanmar military and the AA remain in a tense standoff along the border between Sittwe and Ponnagyun Townships, with heavy weapons and drones being used almost daily.

Residents said the military regime has been reinforcing its forces in Sittwe, with junta warships frequently seen offshore. Meanwhile, regime officials are holding election campaign events and erecting party signs in the city as the pre-election period continues.

As the election nears, the regime has stepped up military operations, with regular shelling in Ponnagyun, Rathedaung, and Pauktaw Townships - all bordering Sittwe - resulting in civilian casualties.