More than 30 huts are being illegally built west of Sittwe Hotel in the Arakan State capital a week after municipal and ward authorities acted to prevent people from squatting there.

Myanmar military soldiers this week forayed into villages in Ponnagyun Township, Arakan State, and questioned residents with a focus on household registration certificates, according to locals. 

A clash between the Myanmar military and coalition forces headed by the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA) broke out near Ingabo village in Kyaikto Township, Mon State, on May 3, forcing more than 1,000 civilians to flee their homes, according to local sources. 

Myanmar’s military regime this week added 46 districts to the administrative structure of the country, saying the move aims to further smooth the wheels of local administration and stimulate development. Few locals in Arakan State who spoke to DMG are convinced by the claim, however. 

The body of a woman who fell into a river after being struck by lightning in Ann Township, Arakan State, was recovered at around 11 a.m. on May 4, family members told DMG. 

Local Muslim residents have joined Arakanese Buddhists to organise an annual pagoda festival for the first time since Arakan State’s 2012 inter-communal conflicts in the Kan Pe area of Minbya Township. 

Myanmar’s military regime distributed propaganda leaflets against the parallel National Unity Government (NUG) to passers-by on Tuesday morning in Mrauk-U Township, Arakan State. 

Local villagers in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township have demanded that action be taken to repair a monastery in Tinma village that was damaged by strong winds on April 20. 

The free expression advocacy group Athan called for the immediate release of 61 journalists in Myanmar who have been arrested since the military coup and remain detained as World Press Freedom Day was marked across the globe on May 3.  

Myanmar Railways has been operating the Pyidawtha-Yaychanpyin rail route in Sittwe Township at a loss in the month-plus since it resumed train services along the previously suspended stretch of tracks. 

Shopkeepers at the new market near BXT Port in the Arakan State capital Sittwe have called for repairs to be made to leaking roofs at the bazaar ahead of Myanmar’s monsoon season. 

Commercial fishers engaged in purse seine fishing off the coast of Arakan State say they are facing losses due to exorbitant commodity and fuel prices. 

At least 10 homes were destroyed by Myanmar military airstrikes on Sunday in Lay Kay village, Mon State, according to a local source. 

Ko Tin Tun Aung, a Paletwa resident who was sentenced to three years in prison under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code earlier this month, appealed his sentence to the district court in Paletwa on April 29, according to family members. 

Local residents have called for upgrading the road linking the Arakan State capital Sittwe and Rathedaung, citing the risks associated with travelling on the existing gravel road.  

 For the second year in a row, the Rammarwadi traditional boat race will be held from May 16-19 in Arakan State’s Ramree Township, with the aim of preserving the long-established cultural showcase, according to the competition’s organising committee. 

The Myanmar military has recently stationed troops at a jetty in Pan Myaung village, Minbya Township, and is inspecting passenger boats plying the Lay Myo River, to the consternation of local residents.

Passenger bus and cargo truck drivers have complained about an ongoing nighttime curfew in place on the Yangon-Sittwe road.

Casualties were reported after two passenger buses were shot at near Pulaw town on the Myeik-Dawei road in Tanintharyi Region on Thursday evening, according to local sources.