Arakan State youth activists protested in Sittwe, Taunggup and Kyaukphyu towns on Saturday afternoon demanding an immediate restoration of internet access in Arakan and Chin states, where an internet blackout has been in place for more than eight months.

Despite fierce fighting in recent months between the military and Arakan Army, the door is still open for the latter to come to the table for a peace dialogue addressing the ethnic armed group’s grievances, President Office spokesperson U Zaw Htay said on February 21.

Tatmadaw and Arakan Army troops engaged in an intense bout of hostilities along a mountain range near Rar Maung Bridge in Minbya Township at about 2 p.m. on February 22, the AA said.

A Tatmadaw officer and a private were killed and another “military personnel” was detained by the Arakan Army after an apparent shootout near Kyauktaw town’s Global Treasure Bank branch on Saturday afternoon, according to AA spokesperson Khaing Thukha.

Some motorbikes owned by students have reportedly been stolen on the university campus and an office of the students’ union has been burgled. In addition, money and mobile phones have frequently been reported stolen from faculty housing, said Ko Toe Toe Aung, chairman of the Sittwe University Students’ Union.

Internally displaced people (IDPs) currently taking shelter at temporary relief camps in Buthidaung Township have reportedly asked for help from Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Dr. Win Myat Aye to return home ahead of the rainy season.

A woman from Laung Shae village in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township was injured by a stray bullet during a clash between the Tatmadaw and Arakan Army (AA) near the village on February 20, according to family members of the victim.

The Arakan Army (AA) on Thursday issued a statement advising civilians in Arakan State to refrain from using military aircraft, vehicles, and vessels when travelling in conflict zones.

The Khumi Affairs Coordination Council (KACC) released a statement on February 19 saying clashes between the Tatmadaw and Arakan Army have significantly hampered communications and transportation for residents of Chin State’s Paletwa Township.

More than 90% of seats at a vocational training school in the Arakan State capital have gone unfilled for the current enrollment period as conflict in the state continues to show its wide-reaching effects.

Arakan Army spokesperson Khaing Thukha said its troops attacked a Tatmadaw convoy on Thursday morning near Kyauk Sauk village in Ramree Township, in an unusual case of hostilities between the two sides flaring south of the heart of the conflict in northern Arakan State.

The 72^nd Chin National Day was celebrated at U Ottama Hall in Sittwe on February 20 but attendance was down compared with previous years, with event organizers blaming the increasingly unstable situation in the region for 2020’s lower headcount.

Arakan Army spokesperson Khaing Thukha told DMG that its forces were responsible for small arms fire that was trained on a Tatmadaw helicopter carrying Arakan State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu and Union Minister Dr. Win Myat Aye earlier this week.

Nearly 800 people recently displaced from their homes and seeking refuge in Buthidaung town have arrived to find the IDP camps there ill-prepared to accommodate the influx and in dire need of more relief aid, camp manager Ko Tun Myat Win said.

More than 200 people attempting to return to Paletwa Township in Chin State are stranded in Kyauktaw town, Arakan State, due to fighting between the Tatmadaw and Arakan Army near the Kaladan River, residents said.

With fighting flaring between Set Khaw and Manaung villages in Buthidaung Township, Arakan State, on Wednesday evening, inhabitants of the two settlements have fled for the relative safety of nearby villages, according to local residents.

A helicopter carrying Arakan State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu and Union Minister for Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement Win Myat Aye was targeted by machine gun fire in Rathedaung Township on Wednesday morning, a military officer who asked for anonymity told DMG.

Four artillery shells launched from Mt. Taung Shay, east of the village, at about 2 p.m. on Monday exploded in the village. The blasts forced villagers from their homes and to nearby villages, said U Thaw Bi Ta, the abbot of the local monastery.

Three student unions have demanded the formation of an independent, international investigative commission to uncover who was responsible for civilian deaths during months of fighting between the Tatmadaw and Arakan Army (AA) in Arakan State.