Charged for their alleged ties to the Arakan Army (AA), three residents from Arakan State’s Sittwe and Ann townships were recently handed down two-year prison sentences.

A growing number of human trafficking cases have been reported among Muslim internally displaced people (IDPs) at camps in Sittwe, Myebon and Pauktaw townships this year, according to camp managers.

The May Yu shopping complex in Bawlonekwin ward of the Arakan State capital Sittwe will open next month, according to developers.

Thousands of people who were displaced by fighting between the military and Arakan Army (AA), and are currently sheltering in Chin State’s Paletwa Township, have reportedly been pushed by the regime to return to their homes next month.

There were at least 40 cases of violence against women reported in Arakan State from January to September 4, according to women’s activist organisations.

The soft-shell crab business is thriving in Arakan State’s Sittwe, Ponnagyun, Kyaukphyu and Gwa townships, creating job opportunities for local people.

More than 250 head of cattle intended to be smuggled across the border from Arakan State to Bangladesh were seized from June 8 to September 11, according to Rakhine Daily, a mouthpiece of the Arakan State military council.

Lower-level government employees say that since the coup, commodity prices have been skyrocketing, and it is becoming difficult for them as well as the grassroots to survive.

Family members say they have had phone contact with one of two Muslim men from Sabeikone Village, part of Arakan State’s Maungdaw Township, who were abducted by members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) last month.

The junta’s transport and communications ministry is planning to increase vehicle registration fees by a factor of three.

Distance learners taking shelter at displacement camps in Arakan State are facing financial difficulties to continue their education due to high food prices and school fees.

A spate of recent cattle deaths in villages on Saku and Magyi islands in Ramree Township, Arakan State, are not due to disease but rather are the result of a lack of care, according to an official of the township Livestock and Veterinary Science Department.

Women in displacement camps have a high prevalence of miscarriages and vaginal and uterine infections due to lack of health knowledge, according to those working on health education.

A Muslim man from Meekyaung Khaungswel Village, part of Arakan State’s Buthidaung Township, was found dead one day after he was detained by the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), locals said.

Led by environmentalists, residents in Arakan State’s Ann Township planted more than 1,300 fruit trees, edible plants and perennials to mark the 84th anniversary of U Ottama Day.

Dengue cases in Arakan State were relatively low in the early part of 2023, but have increased significantly in the post-Cyclone Mocha period.

The 84th anniversary of U Ottama Day on Saturday was not commemorated in many parts of Arakan State due to security concerns, according to residents.

The Arakan Front Party (AFP) in a statement on Saturday called on the military and Arakan Army (AA) to release the political prisoners they are detaining, including two senior party officials.

A man from Tharyargon Village in Maungdaw Township said: “The two defectors are ethnically Arakanese. So, they can only defect to the Arakan Army, I think.”