Ayeyarwady Region Residents Face Arbitrary Abductions over Alleged Links to Arakan Army

Military junta forces are continuing to arbitrarily abduct civilians across townships in Ayeyarwady Region bordering the Rakhine (Arakan) Yoma mountain range, accusing them of maintaining links to the Arakan Army (AA), according to local sources.

The security crackdown comes alongside growing frontline instability, as newly recruited conscripts deployed by the regime in the region desert their posts and defect to resistance forces.

In Kyangin Township, located on the western bank of the Ayeyarwady River near the Rakhine Yoma mountains, junta troops abducted three residents on October 24, including a female shopkeeper in Poesugyi Village. Authorities accused her of illegally storing and selling fuel to the AA before taking all three into custody.

Residents denied the allegations, describing the arrests as part of a broader pattern of arbitrary detentions. Junta troops and police have set up night checks across Kyangin Township, inspecting grocery stores and fuel outlets and questioning local farmers who buy diesel for agricultural equipment.

"Whenever the junta wants to arrest someone in Ayeyarwady Region, it simply accuses them of having links to the AA," a resident told reporters. "Most people here are peaceful residents. There is no way local people are storing fuel for the AA."

Meanwhile, in neighboring Yegyi Township, the military has deployed large numbers of conscripts from recent draft batches to counter active resistance forces along the Rakhine Yoma foothills.

Frontline desertions are rising among the inexperienced recruits. On October 25, three soldiers from Conscription Batch 11 fled a temporary post in the Kambargyi area of Yegyi Township and defected to AA forces operating nearby.

"Conscripts deserting and heavy junta casualties have become common," a Yegyi resident said. "What is different recently is that conscripts are fleeing directly to the AA and resistance forces, with widespread reports that the AA is receiving soldiers who desert at the foothills of the Arakan Yoma."

In response to the desertions, the junta has expanded its footprint in Yegyi Township since early October, establishing additional military outposts, conducting searches, and threatening locals with severe penalties for harboring defectors.