AA Abductions of Rohingya Surge Since 2024 Amid Intensifying Conflict in Rakhine State

Rakhine State, Myanmar, Since 2024, the Arakan Army (AA) has sharply escalated its campaign of abducting Rohingya civilians across northern Rakhine State, with more than 1050 Rohingya youth and adults reportedly taken from their homes and villages. Many remain missing, and their whereabouts are still unknown. Witnesses and local residents describe a pattern of forced conscription, intimidation, and disappearances that has intensified alongside the group’s armed conflict with Myanmar’s military junta.

Forced Abductions Across Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Rathedaung; Beginning in early 2024 and continuing through the year, AA forces expanded their presence in Maungdaw, Buthidaung, and Rathedaung townships, areas historically inhabited by large Rohingya communities. As the fighting intensified, AA fighters allegedly began targeting Rohingya civilians for recruitment.

Witnesses interviewed by community monitors report that AA operatives entered villages late at night, surrounding homes and ordering families to hand over their sons. In some cases, entire groups of men were rounded up during the day, taken from fields, markets, or checkpoints. Those who refused were reportedly threatened with execution or violent retaliation against their families.

A survivor from Buthidaung stated, “They took us saying we must fight with them. They said if we don’t join, they will shoot us. Many young boys were crying. Some never came back.”

No Information on the Missing

Families of the abducted say they have received no official information, no location updates, and no confirmation of whether their loved ones are alive. Many hope their relatives are being held in AA-controlled territory, though some fear the worst.

Human rights monitors warn that these disappearances fit the pattern of enforced disappearance, a serious violation under international law. Community leaders say families are too afraid to demand answers because AA authorities have threatened anyone who questions their actions.

Wider Pattern of Violence in 2024; The rise in abductions coincided with a dramatic shift in Rakhine’s conflict landscape. After renewed clashes with the Myanmar military in late 2023, the AA launched major operations throughout 2024 to consolidate territorial control. Rohingya communities, caught between warring sides, faced:

Between March and August 2024, several large-scale expulsions were reported, including the August 4, 2024 assault on Maung Ni Ward in Maungdaw Township, where more than 5,000 Rohingya were forcibly expelled during AA’s effort to seize control of the area.

Residents say AA has been using systematic coercion to pressure Rohingya to fight in their ranks. In some villages, AA commanders allegedly told Rohingya that their “right to stay” in the township depended on whether they cooperated.

People fleeing Maungdaw reported that AA fighters warned them:

“If you don’t join us, you are not safe here. Leave or die.”

This pressure has driven thousands of Rohingya, already stateless, marginalized, and heavily restricted, to flee repeatedly from village to village, seeking temporary safety.

Witness Testimonies Reveal Severe Abuse, Interviews conducted with escapees reveal patterns of physical abuse during detention. Some described being blindfolded, tied, and beaten before being moved to unknown locations. Others said they were forced to carry weapons, ammunition, and supplies for AA troops.

The cycle of abductions, forced displacement, and killings throughout 2024 has contributed to a worsening humanitarian crisis in northern Rakhine. Aid access remains extremely limited, leaving families without food, medicine, or protection.

Local Rohingya leaders say the community feels abandoned by the international community:

“No one protects us,not the UN, not NGOs. We are left alone between two armies.”

Rohingya activists and diaspora networks are urgently calling for an independent investigation into:

Forced recruitment by the Arakan Army

Enforced disappearances of Rohingya civilians. Mass displacement caused by AA operations since 2024.Violations of international humanitarian and human rights law

They warn that without swift action, the number of missing could rise, and violence against the Rohingya could deepen further.

Report By Rohingya Political Journalist Saiful Arakani.