The Steering Council for the Emergence of a Federal Democratic Union (SCEF) and the United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA) held online talks on July 23, according to an official statement.

Three suspects detained in connection with the rape and murder of a young woman in Ponnagyun Township, Arakan State, have confessed to the crime, according to a statement released by the Department of Law Enforcement and Public Security (DLEPS) under the United League of Arakan/Arakan Army (ULA/AA).

The murder of a 24-year-old woman from Autseik Village in Ponnagyun Township has been described by several Arakanese civil society organizations as one of the most brutal and shocking crimes in Arakan State.

Three civilians were killed and 28 others injured after the military regime carried out six airstrikes over two consecutive days on Thandwe Township, Arakan State, an area controlled by the Arakan Army.

A record 77 suspected drug dealers and users have been arrested in Kyauktaw Township, Arakan State, during a month-and-a-half-long crackdown, with investigations continuing to identify additional suspects linked to the cases.

He said the military regime is prepared to accept the detainees and that navy vessels will be sent to collect them once bilateral negotiations are finalized.

Residents and civil society groups are calling for a swift investigation and justice after a woman in her 20s was raped and murdered in Ponnagyun Township, an area controlled by the Arakan Army in Arakan State.

The Arakan Army is set to grant official licences to 40 companies to import foreign liquor into areas under its control in Arakan State.

Rice prices have risen steadily across Arakan State in recent days, according to local residents and rice merchants.

At least four civilians were injured and about 20 houses were damaged after the military junta launched airstrikes on Ngapali Town in Thandwe Township, Arakan State, on July 23.

The military junta launched airstrikes using a fleet of aircraft on July 23, targeting areas around Ngapali Town and the Maung Shwe Lay naval station in Thandwe Township, an area controlled by the Arakan Army in Arakan State, according to local sources.

Clashes have erupted near Yaychanpyin Village in Sittwe Township, an area still controlled by the military regime, as the Arakan Army launches an offensive in the area, according to a military source.

Family members of an 8-year-old child rape victim in Phaduchay Village, Pauktaw Township, an area under the control of the Arakan Army in Arakan State, have expressed deep frustration over the lack of progress by the Department of Law Enforcement and Public Security (DLEPS) in apprehending the suspect.

Although basic education schools have reopened for the 2026–2027 academic year in townships controlled by the Arakan Army in Arakan State, many children remain unable to attend due to financial difficulties faced by their families, according to local sources.

The military regime's strategy of pursuing separate bilateral ceasefire agreements with ethnic armed organizations is deviating from the Nationwide Ceasefire Agreement (NCA) framework and fragmenting Myanmar's peace process, according to a report by the Institute for Strategy and Policy-Myanmar (ISP-Myanmar).

Residents in northern Maungdaw Township, an area controlled by the Arakan Army, say members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) have recently carried out ambushes, abductions and extortion along the Bangladesh border.

Since former junta chief Min Aung Hlaing assumed the presidency, the military regime has promoted a 100-day peace initiative aimed at engaging ethnic armed organizations. However, it has yet to hold talks with the revolutionary forces actively engaged in fighting on the ground.

Residents in the Yoe Creek area of Kyauktaw Township, Arakan State, which is controlled by the Arakan Army, say they are facing severe healthcare hardships as there is not a single hospital serving more than 30 villages in the area.

Military and political analysts say the TNLA entered the talks under significant Chinese pressure, but believe its demand for statehood could have a realistic chance of succeeding.