Arakan News Agency | Exclusive
Local sources report that the Arakan Army, a separatist armed group, has established military bases using timber looted from Rohingya homes following their forced displacement from villages in northern Maungdaw, in Arakan State, western Myanmar.
Residents told Arakan News Agency that the Arakan Army carried out mass expulsions of Rohingya civilians in the villages of Myaung Taung, Ngan Chaung, and Gon Nar. The group dismantled wooden homes and repurposed the materials to build military fortifications, including guard posts and new battalion structures.
On October 7, 2024, more than 100 Rohingya families were expelled from Myaung Taung village. The Arakan Army seized their farmland and fish ponds, redistributing them to members of the Rakhine ethnic group.
Villagers added that nearby trees were felled for timber to construct bunkers. Additionally, the Arakan Army transported cement and rebar from Bangladesh to erect military facilities atop the ruins of Rohingya properties.
Similar actions were reported in Gon Nar village, part of Ngan Chaung, where residents were expelled in February 2025. Homes were dismantled, and roofs, wooden beams, doors, and windows were used to build observation posts.
These actions were accompanied by the looting of Rohingya-cultivated land and crops. Any attempts to protest were reportedly met with violence, silencing the population out of fear.
A human rights activist stated that Rohingya who had just escaped the oppression of the former military junta now face a new form of repression under the Arakan Army. Their freedom is curtailed, homes and lands are confiscated, and their lives echo the abuses of previous military regimes.
Since seizing control of Maungdaw on December 8, the Arakan Army has continued its violations against the Rohingya. These include closing and taking over homes based on false accusations, confiscating valuable belongings, displacing families, and imposing strict movement restrictions. Rohingya are now unable to move between villages without passing through a network of military checkpoints at the entrances and exits of every Rohingya settlement.
