- Web Master
- October 26, 2024
The military council has
conducted extensive searches for members of the armed resistance in Thandwe
Township, Arakan State, under the pretext of the presence of the People’s
Defense Forces (PDF), locals report.
On the morning of 15 September, three military trucks
carrying about 60 soldiers from Thandwe arrived in Payit and Yay Kaung Ywar
Haung villages, located about 30 miles from Thandwe, and searched the
surrounding forests and areas for PDF members, according to locals.
One local, who wished to remain anonymous, said, “They came
via the 5 Mile road near the hydroelectric power plant. About 60 fully armed
soldiers in three military vehicles arrived at Payit (the former village of Yay
Kauk), which is about 30 miles from Thandwe. They said they were searching for
PDF members. They have been patrolling the forested areas in ambush since the
morning of 15 September. I don’t know what they are up to.”
As the military council troops continue their night patrols
in the forested areas, locals suspect that they are also looking for Arakan
Army (AA) members in the Thandwe area under the pretext of the PDF.
Moreover, since many administrative activities in northern
Rakhine State are now under the control of the Arakan Army, the military
council may be trying to maintain control over the southern regions, locals
say.
As military council troops continue to patrol, locals who
rely on the forest for their livelihoods have had to suspend their activities
and can no longer enter the forested areas.
“We can no longer forage in the forests because they patrol
the area. Farmers have had to stop working. We don’t know how long this will
last,” said a Thandwe resident.
In recent days, military council troops have been conducting
stricter checks at the town gates of Thandwe and thoroughly inspecting
vehicles.
In Thandwe Township and several other towns in Arakan State,
some female activists and locals were sentenced to long prison terms by the
military council last year for allegedly having links to and financially
supporting the PDF, according to locals.