AA captures last 2 outposts in Maungdaw

 Naung Min Thu, Narinjara News, 9 September 2024

The Arakan Army (AA) captured the social welfare relief office & resettlement office and  Bangla monastery, the last two outposts under the 5th border guard police battalion (NaKhaKha-5) in Maungdaw town Sunday morning, said a reliable military source.

“The AA commandos attacked and took control of the social welfare relief  & resettlement office and  Bangla monastery, which functioned as outposts in Myoma Ka Nyin Tan. Now both the  outposts have been captured,” added the military source.

Immediately after the AA captured the outposts, two junta’s jet fighters arrived and conducted airstrikes near the outposts.

The junta soldiers and Muslim armed rebels, who retreated during the AA offensive on Maungdaw, took shelter in the outposts.

“They were strongly positioned at the outposts defending the NaKhaKha-5 base. The artillery shelling and small arms firing could not reach them. They remained inside the buildings and did not surrender. Later the AA commandos issued a battle cry and captured the outposts. All the junta soldiers were killed there,” confirmed the source.

Since 1 September, the junta soldiers have defended the outposts by conducting relentless airstrikes.

The junta ordered the border guard soldiers in these outposts not to retreat. Brigadier-general Thurein Tun, commander of NaKhaKha-5 battalion, instructed them to use snipers against anyone attempting to withdraw.

With only the NaKhaKha-5 battalion remaining, the junta forces airdropped a large quantity of weapons and other supplies to prevent the battalion from collapsing.

“At 6:30 pm on 7 September, the junta forces dropped weapons and supplies from Y-12 aircraft to the NaKhaKha-5 battalion. At four such airdrops were recorded. On the evening of 8 September, they conducted another airdrop using more than 20 parachutes,” said a local witness.

The residents reported that the airdrops occurred on 10, 29 August and 7, 8 September last.

Photograph: the social welfare relief office and Bengla monastery and in Kanyin Tan, an outpost of the junta forces