Myanmar’s Arakan Army seizes 30 soldiers in Chin fighting

The Arakan Army captured 30 soldiers after fighting government troops in Paletwa township in Chin State, the armed ethnic group said Wednesday.

Khaing Thu Kha, a spokesperson of the Arakan Army, said among the captives is a battalion commander.

“We arrested two captains and eight soldiers today. We arrested 20 soldiers yesterday,” he told The Myanmar Times. “We detain them under the prisoner of war law.”

Khaing Thu Kha said the Tatmadaw (military) used rocket launchers, artillery, jet fighters, and helicopters during the fighting on Wednesday.

“We seized a lot of weapons, and 20 soldiers died in the fight,” he said. “Some AA members also died.”

The Myanmar Times was unable to reach Brigadier General Zaw Min Tun, secretary of Tatmadaw True News Information Team, to confirm the report of the Arakan Army spokesperson.

A 50-year-old man died in the clashes, and three other civilians injured in an artillery fire that hit Vi Hu Village on Monday, according to U Kyaw Nyein, chair of the Paletwa-based civic group Khumi Affairs Coordination Council (KACC).

"The Tatmadaw and AA exchanged fires. AA fighters stayed inside the village, and when the Tatmadaw fired at the village with heavy shells, locals suffered,” he told The Myanmar Times. “AA is everywhere in Paletwa, and people fled their homes for safety.”

U Kyaw Nyein identified the fatality as U Chit Tun, an ethnic Rakhine. The injured were U Hla Maung Chay, U Kyaw Mya, and U Ye Tun Aung.

The fresh round of fighting between the Tatmadaw and the Arakan Army in Paletwa started on February 5, cutting off transport routes to the township, which caused acute food shortage for over 100,000 residents

Earlier in the week, the Arakan Army has allowed the transport of 6000 sacks of rice to the township, but it has yet to arrive there.

The rice will be coming from the Rakhine State capital of Sittwe and would be transferred to Kyauktaw township by trucks. From Kyauktaw, the rice will be ferried to Paletwa via Kaladan River.

The Arakan Army, comprised of predominantly ethnic Rakhine people, is fighting for autonomy from the central government. - Translated

Source: https://www.mmtimes.com/news/myanmars-arakan-army-seizes-30-soldiers-chin-fighting.html