More than 40,000 people from Arakan State’s Pauktaw town and surrounding villages have been forced to evacuate their homes amid the fighting between Myanmar military and the Arakan Army (AA) in Pauktaw town.

An administrator from Meetaik Village, part of Arakan State’s Maungdaw Township, was severely injured on Thursday evening in a landmine explosion near a Border Guard Force outpost abandoned by junta soldiers, and lost one of his legs.

A retired politician from Setyonsu Ward in the Arakan State capital Sittwe has been detained by the regime and has reportedly not been allowed to meet with family members.

Ma Tin Nilar Aung aka Mee Nge, the woman detained, has been using the “Nilar Aung” Facebook account to spread propaganda with the aim of disrupting national stability, the military council alleges.

The heavily guarded base has two helipads and was a heavy loss for the regime both militarily and economically, as it is strategically located near the India-Myanmar border with access to Arakan and Chin states, and on the trade route to India, according to analysts.

Local merchants and cargo workers are reportedly facing difficulties as the border trade zones in Arakan State have been closed for nearly a month.

Regime forces arrested a man from Taung Yin ward in Arakan State’s Kyaukphyu town on Wednesday for allegedly funding the Arakan Army (AA).

The regime has arrested at least 70 civilians across Arakan State since November 13 on various pretexts, according to a DMG tally. Some of them were released after they or their families paid ransom money.

At least 16 people — seven from Sittwe and nine from Kyaukphyu — have been charged under Sections 505 (a) and (b) of the Penal Code during renewed hostilities between the military and Arakan Army (AA) in Arakan State.

The regime has been targeting civilians who are not involved in the fighting in Arakan State, using heavy weapons and small arms fire, and burning homes and food.

It has been around 10 days since filling stations shut down across Arakan State except in Thandwe and Gwa towns, said residents.

The operation has achieved a certain degree of success thanks to a continuous offensive against the intended military targets, said the ethnic alliance.

The Arakan Army (AA) ambushed junta troops near Ngwetaungpauk Bridge in Mrauk-U Township, Arakan State, on Wednesday afternoon, according to local residents.

The border trade between Myanmar and Thailand has temporarily ceased due to ongoing fighting between the military and anti-regime forces in Kawkareik, Kayin (Karen) State.

The junta’s Light Infantry Battalion Nos. 371, 372 and 372, stationed on Mt. Tawhein in Kazukaing village-tract, fired mortar shells into the villages from 9 a.m. to noon, according to locals.

Nineteen homes caught fire and a local woman was injured in Manawthiri Village, part of Arakan State’s Pauktaw Township, on Tuesday after artillery shells fired by a junta warship landed and exploded in the village.

“We need new Arakha warriors — Defenders of Our Fatherland — who have genuine love for Arakha State and are dedicated to defending it,” reads the AA statement.

The regime arrested 70 locals from Ohntaw and Gonechein villages, and Taungyin and Cediya wards, at different locations including near a government technical institute on Monday.

Myanmar’s military regime has invited soldiers who have deserted or gone absent without leave to return to the barracks, promising that they will not be punished for any minor crime they might have committed.