Rathedaung residents flee to safer areas to avoid junta airstrikes

By Admin 19 Nov 2025

DMG Newsroom

19 November 2025, Rathedaung

Locals in Rathedaung Township, Arakan State, are reportedly moving to temporary shelters to avoid airstrikes by Myanmar's military regime.

The Arakan Army announced that five locals were killed and six others injured in an airstrike on Barhtalay and Ngwartingote villages in Rathedaung Township on November 15.

"The situation in Rathedaung Township is particularly worrying. The military regime has attacked Barhtalay and Ngwartingote villages. Villagers from nearby areas have temporarily evacuated to relatives' homes and other villages, while some have moved to fields, forest thickets and mountains. They don't dare stay in their villages," said a local man in Rathedaung.

Residents of nearby villages hit by airstrikes, including Tunyawai, Barhtalay, Sankar, Nyaungbinhla, Aleywa, Sabahtar, Ngwartingote and Kyeintha, are reportedly fleeing in fear.

On November 8, the military regime bombed Kyaukthanchay Village in Ponnagyun Township, close to Kyeintha Village in Rathedaung Township, killing two locals and injuring four others.

"It is difficult to give an exact figure for those currently fleeing, but almost every village is fleeing by household. The locals are not fleeing from war, but from airstrikes. There may be hundreds of people who have fled to safety," said a social worker in Rathedaung Township.

The military regime has been conducting frequent airstrikes on townships controlled by the Arakan Army, leading to a rising number of civilian casualties, including children, and residents living in fear.

A junta jet fighter bombed Tunyawai Village in Rathedaung Township on May 13, killing 12 civilians and injuring at least 23 others.

Since then, the villagers of Tunyawai have not dared return home, but have been staying in relatives' houses, on roadsides, and in gardens and plantations in nearby villages.

"The locals are very afraid of the warplanes. The military regime is shooting at innocent villagers. We have been fleeing for about six months and have not returned. Others have not dared to return either. We have to fend for ourselves," said a young man from Tunyawai Village.

The military regime is intensifying artillery and airstrikes in Arakan State, and civilian casualties continue to rise.

According to a DMG tally, at least 25 people, including children, were killed and at least 39 injured in artillery, air and drone attacks in Arakan State from November 1 to 17.