Three regime troops ‘killed’ in Rakhine State capital; National Unity Government rejects Myitsone dam

Three regime troops ‘killed’ in Rakhine State capital

A source close to the Arakan Army (AA) told DVB that at least three regime troops were killed and five others were injured by Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAV), or drones, launched by the AA in the Arakan State capital Sittwe on Saturday. Regime forces launched retaliatory artillery strikes against AA positions after it attacked four regime outposts on Jan. 2, the source added.

A Sittwe resident told DVB that he has heard small-arms fire from regime Police Battalion 12 outside the town and from a regime outpost near Let Way Thalone Taw Pagoda, one mile (1.6 km) north of Sittwe, since Jan. 1. Regime forces have intensified night time patrols inside the city, and brought in reinforcements from Shwemingan Naval Base, five miles (8 km) southeast of Sittwe.

Residents told DVB that the regime’s administration in Sittwe announced that a festival will take place to mark the city’s 200th anniversary Jan. 21-23. The AA has seized control of 14 out of Arakan’s 17 townships, as well as Paletwa Township in southern Chinland, since it launched a statewide offensive against regime forces on Nov. 13, 2023. Sittwe, Kyaukphyu and Manaung are under regime control.

National Unity Government rejects Myitsone dam project

The National Unity Government (NUG) stated on Tuesday that it will cooperate with allied resistance groups to protect the Irrawaddy River. This is in response to the regime’s attempt to revive the suspended Myitsone hydropower dam project – planned at the confluence of Maykha and Malikha rivers on the upper Irrawaddy River in Kachin State – following the conclusion of its elections on Jan. 25.

Nay Phone Latt, the The NUG spokesperson, said on Jan. 6 that the regime is “selling out” the Irrawaddy to Beijing in an attempt to “cling to power.” Naw Bu, the Kachin Independence Army (KIA) spokesperson, told DVB that the project’s revival is likely due to “pressure from China.” Senior General Min Aung Hlaing led a military coup that overthrew the National League for Democracy (NLD) government on Feb. 1, 2021.

Nay Phone Latt added that Min Aung Hlaing is an “illegitimate ruler” and that his regime doesn’t have the power to sign any contract with Beijing. The China-backed project was first outlined in 2009 but suspended in 2011 by President Thein Sein’s Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) government due to public opposition over earthquake risks. It is located 16 miles (25 km) northeast of the Sagaing Fault.