Fierce fighting continues in Rakhine State as military tries to push back AA advance

The Myanmar military regime's forces have continued to use heavy artillery to repel advances by anti-junta forces into Rakhine State’s Sittwe and Kyaukphyu townships this week, local sources said. The military regime shelled multiple times near the state capital of Sittwe while civilian residents were still trapped inside the town, facing food shortages and soaring prices amid ongoing fighting.“We hear heavy artillery fire every day. Sometimes, it goes on all day long but it was silent for a bit this morning,” a woman from Sittwe Township told Myanmar Now on Tuesday.A video circulated by pro-junta propaganda Telegram channels showed junta artillery attacks on a few resistance targets in War Bo village, around four miles north of Sittwe, located near a junta navy base. The anti-junta armed group Arakan Army (AA) has had Sittwe Township effectively surrounded since capturing three neighboring townships last year.Junta forces returned fire after the AA conducted heavy shelling over villages around ten miles north of Sittwe, which was occupied by the military as a defensive position in February. At least 7,000 people from rural villages are currently seeking refuge in 40 monasteries within the town after being forced to flee their homes by junta troops last year.“We received rice from WFP (World Food Programme) earlier this month but they said they will suspend all aid from now on,” a displaced woman from Sittwe Township said.A few displaced people sheltering at monasteries told Myanmar Now that there is an urgent need for food, medicine and clothes for children in Sittwe. “We can’t buy any food due to the prices. We’ve got to eat whatever is available. Meat and fish aren't affordable. Sometimes, we have to eat plain rice porridge,” a displaced woman from Ywar Gyi Taung Ward said.Propaganda channels also claimed the junta conducted drone attacks near its naval headquarters in Kyaukphyu Township, a site of China-backed investments in Rakhine State. “We heard five rounds of artillery fire this morning but it’s far from the urban area. The town is still safe and students are also sitting the matriculation exam inside the town,” a man from Kyaukphyu Township said. AA spokespersons had not responded to Myanmar Now’s inquiries regarding the ongoing fighting as of the time of reporting.Junta drone assaults on resistance targets have continued for weeks in the villages near the naval headquarters, located on the north side of Ramree (Yanbye) Island, around ten miles by road from the junta-controlled town of Kyaukphyu, according to people displaced by the fighting. Drone attacks also killed a man in Kyat Tein village and destroyed at least 50 homes on March 7 and 10, according to Arakan Princess Media, a local outlet affiliated with the AA.A hospital in the town of Sa Ne, around a 38-mile drive from Kyaukphyu, was also damaged by a junta drone assault on March 10.

Fierce fighting continues in Rakhine State as military tries to push back AA advance

The regime has resorted to shelling and over areas where large numbers of civilians remain trapped to fend off assaults by the Arakan Army (AA)

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