Military closes Angumaw-Maungdaw road following Rathedaung Twsp fighting

By DMG 14 Aug 2022

DMG Newsroom
14 August 2022, Sittwe  

The Myanmar military has blockaded the Angumaw-Maungdaw road since the evening of August 13, said locals and drivers. 

The road section between Angumaw village in Rathedaung Township and Maungdaw town in the eponymous township was closed after the military clashed with the Arakan Army in the Mayu Hills between Rathedaung Township’s Donpaik and Cheinkhali villages on Saturday. 

“Security checkpoints along the road do not allow travellers to travel to either Angumaw or Maungdaw. The drivers are facing difficulties due to the closure of the road,” said a driver plying a route between Angumaw and Maungdaw. 

A security checkpoint in Kyeinchaung village has restricted traffic since Saturday night after clashes broke out between the Myanmar military and Arakan Army in northern Maungdaw Township, said a resident who did not want to be named for security reasons. 

“Vehicles are not allowed to traverse the security checkpoint. Residents from Kyeinchaung village are not allowed to travel to Maungdaw. All vehicles coming from the northern part of Maungdaw were sent back,” the unnamed resident added. 

“It is true that the road was closed. We suspended operations due to the road closure,” said a passenger bus driver plying a route between Maungdaw and Taungpyo village. 

A resident of Tamanthar village said it is not yet known when local people will be allowed to travel again, adding that if the road is closed for a long time, it will cause difficulties for the residents. 

“Locals dare not go outside as the sound of heavy weapons fire was heard yesterday,” he said. “The road was closed and locals are not allowed to travel to Maungdaw. If the road is closed for a lengthy period, locals will face many difficulties.” 

Residents from at least 20 villages north of Kyeinchaung village are facing livelihood hardships due to the travel restrictions accompanying the military’s new security checkpoint. 

“It is more likely that the fighting will continue in Maungdaw due to the road closure. The travel restrictions cause a lot of health problems for the locals,” said U Maung Ohn, a former Arakan State lawmaker for Maungdaw Township. 

Arakan State Minister for Security and Border Affairs Colonel Kyaw Thura was not immediately available for comment.

 The Myanmar military suffered casualties in Saturday’s fighting and some weapons and ammunition were seized, said U Khaing Thukha, spokesman for the Arakan Army. 

Military tensions have been running high between the two sides for months, with intermittent clashes over recent weeks threatening a precarious informal ceasefire that has been in place since November 2020. 

DMG attempts to contact Maj-Gen Zaw Min Tun, the spokesman for Myanmar’s military regime, were unsuccessful.