Thai authorities need to officially authorise Myanmar aid workers to cross the border into Thailand to provide assistance to refugees fleeing fighting inside eastern Myanmar, according to humanitarian stakeholders. 

A court is set to decide on January 12 whether to prosecute five men from the Kyaukseik village area in Arakan State’s Ponnagyun Township who were arrested on suspicion of links to the Arakan Army (AA) in April 2020, and were subsequently arraigned under the Counter-Terrorism Law. 

The Department of Higher Education reopened universities and colleges across Myanmar on January 6, but only about a quarter of students have reportedly returned to class at Sittwe University.

The Arakan Liberation Party (ALP) said in a January 6 statement that it will join forces with other Arakan armed organisations and political parties to fight for wins in various ways until a final victory is achieved. 

Homes for internally displaced people (IDPs) at Wah Taung camp, in Arakan State’s Kyauktaw Township, are in a state of disrepair and urgently need to be repaired, according to a camp official.

Charcoal demand is reportedly rising due to frequent power outages in several Arakan State townships. 

The number of people arrested by the junta under Section 505(a) of the Penal Code in Kyaikto Township, Mon State, is increasing, with at least 30 people arrested in the past four months. 

U Hla Thein, a spokesperson for the Arakan State regime council, told journalists on January 3 that the military government plans to remove tricycles and other three-wheelers from the streets of the Arakan State capital Sittwe. 

U Hla Thein, a spokesperson for the Arakan State regime council, told journalists on January 3 that the military government plans to remove tricycles and other three-wheelers from the streets of the Arakan State capital Sittwe. 

A spokesman for the Arakan State Administration Council said traditional zat pwe troupes and stage shows have not been officially allowed as Covid-19 has not been eliminated in Arakan State. 

In the past, security forces only asked drivers for the number of passengers in the vehicle, but now they are asking passengers to get off and check their IDs, the Maungdaw resident added.

More than 1.2 million fish and shrimp hatchlings have been added to rivers and creeks in Arakan State in the 2021-22 financial year to improve fish and shrimp production in the state, according to the state’s Department of Fisheries.

An ongoing curfew order under Section 144 of the code of criminal procedure, imposed in Ann Township, Arakan State, has been extended for another two months from January 2, according to locals.

A final proposal seeking to designate Mrauk-U a UNESCO World Heritage Site was submitted on December 30 to the World Heritage Committee in Paris, according to the Department of Archeology and National Museum.

Ecotourism on Arakan State’s Manaung Island will be launched on January 26, according to U Tun Hlaing, managing director of Manaung Public Company.

Villagers in Pauktaw Township, Arakan State, are reportedly worried as Myanmar military troops have moved from one village to another in recent days. 

Brigadier-General Nyo Twan Awng, deputy commander-in-chief of the Arakan Army (AA), has invited intellectuals and professionals to serve Arakan State as the state’s mechanisms need more qualified personnel.

There were more than 130 clashes between the Karenni Nationalities Defence Force (KNDF) and the Myanmar military in Kayah State from May to December 2021, resulting in casualties on both sides and civilian fatalities, the KNDF said in a statement on January 3.

With stoplights going dark in the Arakan State capital Sittwe during power outages — leading to traffic congestion and safety concerns — residents are calling for a battery-powered alternative or backup to the current system.