The junta is deploying large numbers of troops to Ayeyarwady Region’s beach resort areas in an attempt to establish defensive lines following the Arakan Army (AA)’s recent move into Shwe Thaung Yan on the shore of the Bay of Bengal, according to residents and sources close to the regime’s military.
Combined forces of the AA and local resistance groups in Ayeyarwady Region launched attacks on junta soldiers and police stationed in Magyizin Village in Shwe Thaung Yan earlier this month. Clashes were reported in Magyizin, Kalarchaung, Wat Thay and Bomie villages until Jan. 10. Since then, there has been no further fighting, according to local residents.
Shwe Thaung Yan is a beach town in Ayeyarwady, 40 km northwest of the regional capital Pathein, where the junta’s Southwestern Command is based. Magyizin Village lies 26 km south of Gwa, a Rakhine State town seized by the AA in late December.
Over the past year, the Arakan Army (AA), a member of the Brotherhood Alliance, has seized control of nearly the whole of Rakhine. Only three of the state’s townships remain under junta control. The AA recently expanded its operations into neighboring Ayeyarwady Region, coordinating with other resistance forces in the area.
The regime is preparing defensive lines by deploying forces, including armored vehicles, from bases in Pathein and other townships to Shwe Thaung Yan, Ngwe Saung and Chaung Tha towns, according to sources close to the junta military.
One of these sources stated, “The junta’s military is rapidly constructing a helicopter landing zone in the beach town Ngwe Saung and continuously sending forces into these towns. These forces include new recruits drafted under the conscription law.”
In recent days, hundreds of troops and dozens of armored vehicles have been deployed in a round-the-clock operation, according to Zin Yaw, a former military captain who defected to participate in the Civil Disobedience Movement.
“The junta is attempting to strengthen its defenses in Shwe Thaung Yan while also sending forces to Bomie and Magyizin. Meanwhile, the AA and its allies are holding their fire. Instead, they are steadily maneuvering on the ground, establishing positions, and carefully preparing for the next offensive,” he stated.
However, the junta’s military has continued to fire artillery shells into and around these villages. With military tensions remaining high, tens of thousands of residents from around a dozen villages in these areas have fled to Shwe Thaung Yan town, as well as to Pathein and Thabaung townships in the region.
“Clashes started erupting on Jan. 5 and 6 and [continued] in the following days. The military launched both air and naval strikes, and ground battles ensued. Our village has about 250 households, but only around 60 have been able to flee. Therefore, dozens of households remain trapped,” said a Magyizin resident.
These villages, which are bearing the brunt as the junta’s military and the AA square off against each other, are located along the 160-km Ngayokekaung-Gwa Road, which links southern Rakhine State and Ayeyarwady Region. Towns such as Shwe Thaung Yan, Ngwe Saung and Chaungtha, renowned for their beautiful beach resorts, lie along this route.
As the AA has been steadily seizing towns in southern Rakhine State bordering Ayeyarwady Region, the junta has been vigorously preparing defensive lines around Ngathaingchaung Subtownship in Ayeyarwady.
However, instead of advancing into junta-controlled areas through Nga Thaing Chaung Township in the upper part of the region, the AA has opted to use the strategically important seaside road connecting Ngayokekaung in Ngapudaw Township, Ayeyarwady Region, with Gwa in Rakhine State.
Shortly before the AA’s advancement into the region, junta deputy chief Soe Win went to regional capital Pathein on Dec. 27 to encourage newly drafted soldiers there.
The owner of a hotel in Shwe Thaung Yan beach said they have not been accepting visitors since Monday, nor are they currently accepting bookings, due to security concerns.
“Now there are almost no visitors at all to the beach and urban areas of our town, but it is crowded with displaced people who fled from their villages in recent days,” she said.
The junta’s military conducted a large-scale joint military exercise called “Sin Phyu Shin” involving over 8,000 troops in Shwe Thaung Yan in February 2018.
