Arakan State residents have said they want to be able to freely visit hilltop pagodas and temples during Myanmar’s imminent New Year festival, Thingyan, to practice religious activities at those sites, near some of which the military has maintained deployments, in some cases for years.

Water from a dam near Pyin Kauk village in Arakan State’s Manaung Township has a bad smell, locals say, making it difficult for residents to use water from certain sources.

Hundreds of people who have taken refuge in Sittwe after being displaced by 2018-20 fighting between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army (AA) are cash-strapped and facing hardship, with even basic food purchases out of reach for some.

With the approach of Thingyan, the Myanmar New Year Festival, the number of people visiting Ngapali Beach in Thandwe Township, Arakan State, is on the rise, hoteliers said.

Several vehicles had their windows smashed in Arakan State’s Kyaukphyu Township on Tuesday, according to the vehicles’ owners.

Artefacts including Buddha images and stone inscriptions were unearthed when a stupa in Kyauk Myaung village, part of Arakan State’s Ann Township, recently underwent renovation.

Daw Than Than Swe, deputy governor of the junta-controlled Central Bank of Myanmar (CBM), was reportedly shot at her residence in Yangon’s Bahan Township on Thursday.

A bridge on the road linking Taungpyoletwe and Kyein Chaung villages, near the border with Bangladesh in northern Maungdaw Township, was targeted by an explosive device on Wednesday and was slightly damaged in the blast.

Over 500 clashes took place in territory controlled by the Karen National Union (KNU) in March, killing more than 50 locals, according to a source close to the ethnic armed organisation’s militant wing, the Karen National Liberation Army (KNLA).

Former Arakan State Chief Minister U Nyi Pu and his subordinate municipal minister U Min Aung, facing charges under the Penal Code for alleged election-related violations, were convicted on two counts Wednesday in the latest legal troubles for the two men under Myanmar’s military regime.

Homes have been damaged by artillery shelling in some villages of Kayah State’s Demoso Township over recent days, according to sources on the ground.

Brick manufacturers in Arakan State’s Manaung Township have suffered losses due to recent rains.

Civil society organisations (CSOs) in Arakan State’s Ramree Township have mobilised local residents to dredge the Tan Creek, which flows through the town.

Fifteen million methamphetamine pills imprinted with the letters WY were recently seized at a military checkpoint in Ann Township, Arakan State on April 5, according to the chief of the Ann Township police force, Police Captain Myo Kyi.

In a wide-ranging press conference on Tuesday, the Arakan Army insisted it has a zero-tolerance policy when it comes to corruption; invited more Arakanese intellectuals to join its cause; and warned that conflict in Arakan State could flare anew if Myanmar’s military regime interferes in AA efforts to establish an administrative apparatus and judiciary separate from the junta’s own. 

A local man from Paletwa Township, Chin State, who was detained by the Myanmar military on incitement charges late last year, was sentenced to three years in prison with hard labour by the township court on Tuesday, according to a family member.

The Arakan Army (AA) says it has taken action against two individuals involved in what the ethnic armed group described as an investigation into Mrauk-U resident U Maung Gyi Hla, who reportedly died during interrogation last month. 

The Arakan Army (AA) has accused Myanmar’s military regime of sabotaging its efforts to achieve harmony between Buddhist and Muslim communities in conflict-torn Arakan State. 

Since its coup last year, Myanmar’s military regime has required suppliers to seek its approval to bring certain goods into Arakan State, severely affecting businesses and disrupting commodity flows; an issue that the Arakan Army (AA) addressed in a wide-ranging press conference on Tuesday.