Fighting has intensified around Sittwe, the capital of Myanmar’s Rakhine State, as the Arakan Army (AA) expands operations towards military positions on the city’s western outskirts, according to local residents and sources familiar with the fighting.

The latest clashes have been reported around Ye Chan Pyin and Kwe Te villages, where the AA has launched attacks on military positions. The fighting comes as the armed group continues operations against military positions in several areas surrounding Sittwe.

AA-linked military sources said clashes had continued for two days around Ye Chan Pyin, Wongrepyo and Chek Taw Pyin. While there had been no major direct confrontation around Kwe Te, guerrilla attacks were reported in the area.

“Fighting remains intense,” an AA-linked source said, adding that detailed battlefield information was not immediately available.

The AA had previously been conducting operations near Haingjun, close to the Padalet Regiment north of Sittwe, as well as around Taungkan and Nari Kan near the Kyi Ma Thauk Regiment, Kandaw Island and the Shwe Min Gan naval base east of the city.

The latest offensive around Ye Chan Pyin has reportedly prompted the military to move some troops from the Padalet regiments and the Sittwe regional command headquarters towards the area.

A Sittwe resident familiar with the military situation said troops had earlier been sent to Padalet as fighting there intensified.

“Some of those troops are now being sent towards Ye Chan Pyin,” the resident said. “Gunfire can still be heard from that direction.”

Military supply, medical and artillery units are located near the areas where the fighting is taking place. A staff member working under the military administration in Sittwe said additional troops had recently been deployed around Ye Chan Pyin.

Residents also reported clashes around Nari Kan, Taungkan, Wabo Island, Kwan Taung and the Shwe Min Gan naval base.

The reports could not be independently verified, but residents said the military had suffered casualties and responded with airstrikes and artillery fire.

A woman living in Sittwe’s Pidawtha ward said military aircraft were still operating over the area on the evening of October 6.

“People in the city become frightened whenever aircraft approach,” she said. “There is nowhere for us to escape.”

Residents in nearby Pauk Taw Township also reported almost daily air activity and artillery fire.

“There is no time when we do not hear explosions,” one resident said, describing a particularly loud blast near the Shwe Min Gan area.

The escalation around Sittwe follows a deadly military airstrike in Kyauktaw, where at least 51 civilians, including children, were reportedly killed and more than 60 injured.

The AA has since intensified its operations in Sittwe and Kyaukphyu townships, according to local sources. The military, meanwhile, has been accused of carrying out repeated airstrikes and artillery attacks on civilian locations, including displacement shelters, clinics and markets.

The fighting is part of a wider military campaign launched on September 4 against areas controlled by the AA. The military has reportedly referred to the operation as “Operation 4926”.

The campaign has extended beyond Rakhine, with military operations reported against AA-held areas from Padan and Mindon townships in Magway Region, Pantawng in Bago Region, and Yegyi and Thabaung townships in Ayeyarwady Region.

More than a month into the campaign, however, battlefield sources cited in the report say the military has failed to recapture any major AA stronghold. Instead, the AA has continued seizing military positions and has shifted from largely defensive operations to counteroffensives in several areas.

Military-linked social media accounts have claimed that government forces are making gains in Rakhine and that the AA has suffered heavy losses. Battlefield sources, however, give a different picture.

According to those sources, the military has lost at least 11 positions during the campaign  nine in Sittwe Township, one in Kyaukphyu and one in Mindon. Hundreds of soldiers have reportedly been killed or wounded, while reinforcements have repeatedly been sent to replace losses.

BOB Post