Malaysia says Myanmar to take 5,000 Rohingya refugees
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim said Myanmar has agreed to take 5,000 Rohingya from Burma currently living in Malaysia, where there has recently been hate speech online targeting the vulnerable community. Speaking at a campaign rally on Wednesday, Anwar said good relations with Burma had enabled Malaysia to negotiate on the deportations.
“We have good relations with Myanmar. They have now agreed to take 5,000 Rohingya from Malaysia,” Anwar said, without elaborating further. Muslim-majority Malaysia has long been seen as a safe haven for Rohingya fleeing persecution in Burma, with around 126,000 Rohingya registered with the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) in Malaysia as of the end of February.
On July 29, the UNHCR stated that it was fully committed to working with Malaysia after Foreign Minister Mohamad Hasan called for a review of its operations unless it imposed stricter controls on issuing refugee documents. Over 100 Rohingya refugees, who had gathered outside the UNHCR office in Kuala Lumpur, were released after being detained by Malaysian authorities. Read more on our website
Kim Aris warns ASEAN not to lend regime legitimacy
Jailed State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi’s son, Kim Aris, reiterated his call for the regime to release his mother from detention in the capital Naypyidaw on social media Wednesday. The National League for Democracy (NLD) leader and Nobel Peace Prize laureate, has been held incommunicado since the military coup on Feb. 1, 2021.
“For more than 2,000 days, she has been hidden from her family and from the world. I have spent all these years seeking reliable, credible information about her. I have spoken to governments, diplomats and anyone who might know the truth,” Aris wrote on July 29. He launched the “Proof of Life” campaign in April which demands independent verification that Aung San Suu Kyi is still alive.
In an interview on July 22 with Radio Free Asia (RFA), Aris requested global leaders to follow the actions of French President Emmanuel Macron, who called on the regime to ensure Aung San Suu Kyi’s human rights. Aris warned the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) that any public engagement with the regime gives it legitimacy. Read more on our website
SAC-M demands penalties for Naypiydaw’s non-compliance
The Special Advisory Council for Myanmar (SAC-M), an independent group of international human rights experts, issued a statement on Wednesday calling on ASEAN to enforce its Five-Point Consensus by introducing measurable benchmarks and consequences for the regime in Naypyidaw if it continues to fail to implement or enforce the peace plan.
“ASEAN must judge the junta on its words and deeds,” SAC-M, which includes former Malaysian Foreign Minister Saifuddin Abdullah and former Thai Foreign Minister Kasit Piromya, wrote in a press release on July 29. They called on ASEAN to publicly release its compliance benchmarks, set implementation deadlines and adopt escalating punitive measures.
SAC-M urged ASEAN to reinstate its ban on engagement with senior regime officials from Burma, which was ended when 2026 Chair the Philippines’ Special Envoy Ma. Theresa P. Lazaro met with regime Foreign Minister Tin Maung Swe in Bangkok, Thailand, on July 12. It called on ASEAN to begin engagement with Burma’s democratic forces. Read more on our website
News by Region
MAGWAY—Residents in Myaing Township’s Thinma village told DVB that regime forces reached eight miles (13 km) east of the oilfields in Kyaukkwet village on Sunday. Myaing, located 130 miles (209 km) north of the region’s capital Magway, is contested by the People’s Defense Force (PDF).
A PDF member in Myaing told DVB on the condition of anonymity that at least 30 civilians have been killed by regime troops, and over 30 villages have been evacuated since a regime counteroffensive began in May. Local PDF members seized control of the oilfields in Kyaukkwet in 2024.
MANDALAY—The regime’s Department of Meteorology and Hydrology recorded a 4.5 magnitude earthquake with its epicenter located six miles (10 km) northwest of Aungmyaythazan Township, about four miles (6 km) north of the region’s capital Mandalay, on Wednesday.
Residents shared on social media that they felt a significant tremor in the evening on July 29. One recounted how he ran out of his home. The earthquake on March 28, 2025, killed at least 4,477 people nationwide, with 2,916 bodies recovered in Mandalay, according to DVB data.
SAGAING—Residents of Wetlet and Sagaing townships told DVB that four civilians were killed, three others were injured, and at least 23 homes were destroyed by airstrikes carried out by the Burma Air Force on Talaingkyun, Paukkan, Kugyi and Samon villages on July 27-28.
A resident from Talaingkyun village in Wetlet Township told DVB on the condition of anonymity that a couple displaced from Mandalay’s Singu Township were amongst the victims, while three injured civilians have been receiving medical treatment. Read more on our website
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