Residents in Arakan State told DVB that the reopening of the Jarma Central Mosque on Sept. 12 was approved by the Arakan Army (AA) Commander-in-Chief Twan Mrat Naing personally during his meeting with Islamic religious leaders in Maungdaw Township on Aug. 30. The historic mosque had been shut down since inter-communal conflict broke out across Arakan in 2012.
“We achieved positive results,” a Maungdaw resident who attended the meeting told DVB on the condition of anonymity, but did not disclose further details. He added that the AA leader discussed regional development and how to better integrate Muslims into its expanding administration.
The AA has seized 14 out of 17 townships in Arakan, as well as Paletwa in neighbouring Chinland. Maungdaw, located in northern Arakan, was seized by the AA on Dec. 8.
An Arakan State-based politician, who withheld his name due to security concerns, told DVB that the meeting was evidence that the AA did not discriminate against the Muslim community in territory under its control. He claimed that members of the Muslim diaspora abroad were spreading “fake news” about the AA but did not elaborate further.
The Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK) announced that it had petitioned the Federal Court in Buenos Aires, Argentina, to issue arrest warrants for AA leaders, including Twan Mrat Naing and Nyo Twan Awng.
Twenty-five arrest warrants for Myanmar state officials were issued by Argentina in relation to the Rohingya genocide case under a universal jurisdiction law opened in 2021.
Islamic religious leaders in Maungdaw released a statement on Aug. 23, countering allegations made the Arakan Rohingya National Council (ARNC) against the AA, which claimed that it had killed over 600 Rohingya civilians in Htan Shauk Kan village of Buthidaung Township on May 2-3, 2024.
The Islamic leaders added that 790 out of the Htan Shauk Kan’s total 933 residents live in the village, while 138 have relocated to Bangladesh. Khaing Thukha, the AA spokesperson, vehemently denied claims of AA responsibility in the Rohingya civilians’ deaths during a press conference on Aug. 11.
A statement by Amnesty International on Aug. 22 accused the AA of committing extrajudicial killings, torture, forced labor and large-scale arson in northern Arakan against Rohingya civilians. An estimated 150,000 of them have fled into Bangladesh since mid-2024, according to the U.N.
But an Islamic religious leader in Mrauk-U Township of northern Arakan told DVB on the condition of anonymity that Muslims have enjoyed more religious freedom under the AA administration.
He added that it has permitted the reopening of mosques and the building new ones upon request. Mrauk-U, located 88 miles (142 km) northeast of the state capital Sittwe, was seized by the AA in February 2024.
The Arakan State capital Sittwe, the port town of Kyaukphyu, and the island of Manaung, remain under regime control.
