Bangladesh summons Myanmar ambassador over border skirmish; Min Aung Hlaing blames Arakan Army

Bangladesh summons Myanmar ambassador over border skirmish

Bangladesh’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said it summoned Burma’s regime ambassador Kyaw Soe Moe on Tuesday to discuss fighting between the Arakan Army (AA), the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), the Arakan Rohingya Army (ARA), and the Rohingya Islami Mahaz, near Maungdaw Township, Arakan State, about 63 miles (101 km) southeast of Cox’s Bazar, where 1.2 million Rohingya live in refugee camps.

Bangladesh media reported that at least two people, including a 12-year-old girl, were injured in Cox’s Bazar district during fighting there on Jan. 11. Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) said it detained 57 members from the three Rohingya armed groups, who reportedly crossed back into Bangladesh to flee AA counterattacks, and filed criminal cases against 53 of them for illegal entry into the country.

Bangladeshi authorities placed the 168 mile (271 km) long border with Burma on “high alert” on Jan. 11. The AA seized Maungdaw in December 2024, which brought the entire Burma-Bangladesh border under its control. The AA has seized 14 of Arakan’s 17 townships since it launched an offensive on Nov. 13, 2023. It and the three Rohingya armed groups have not released any statements.