Eight Civilians Abducted by ARSA Near Myanmar-Bangladesh Border; Five Escape, Three Remain in Captivity

Breaking News January 5, 2026

The Islamist terrorist group Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) abducted eight civilians, including five Rakhine seeking medical treatment in Bangladesh, near the Myanmar-Bangladesh border on January 4. Five managed to escape overnight, while three remain in the group's hands, according to accounts from survivors.

The incident occurred as a group of six civilians from Maungdaw's Wimala ward in Myanmar's Rakhine State — three men, two women, and a 9-year-old boy — attempted to cross into Bangladesh for medical care. They were accompanied by three Bangladeshi guides from Nyaung Chaung village.

The group crossed the border around 2:00 PM on January 4 near Border Post 42. One elderly woman, Daw Nu Khin Hla (76), traveled separately by rickshaw due to mobility issues.

Around 4:00 PM, approximately 2.26 km west of the border post, seven armed men from ARSA intercepted the eight individuals (five Rakhine adults and the three guides). The abductors took them into hilly terrain, where they tied up the five adult men with ropes, beat them with sticks, and robbed them of phones, gold, and cash.

Two Rakhine Individuals Who Escaped from The Abduction

Survivors reported that the women and the child were not physically harmed. One escapee, Yan Naung Soe, described the ordeal in a phone interview after reaching safety.

That night, around 9:00 PM, five individuals — including Yan Naung Soe, another Rakhine man named Kyaw, and the three Bangladeshi guides (Hla Tun San, Pan Kyar, and Kam Tha Ra) — escaped under cover of darkness. Yan Naung Soe jumped from a hill to evade pursuers using dogs but eventually reached Nyaung Chaung village in Bangladesh by 6:00 AM on January 5.

The three still held by ARSA terrorists are Daw Soe Soe Khine (38), Daw Than Tar Soe (32), and Daw Soe Soe Khine's 9-year-old son Maung Wai Yan Lin.

ARSA, designated as a terrorist organization by the international community, has been active in northern Rakhine State and is known for attacks targeting security forces and innocent civilians. The group has high records of abductions, extortion, and violence against non-Muslim and moderate Muslim communities in the region.

Critics and local observers have accused Bangladeshi authorities of partially failing to prevent ARSA's operations along the porous border, allowing the group to use refugee camps and border areas for recruitment, shelter, and cross-border incursions.

This abduction underscores persistent security threats along the porous border amid Myanmar's ongoing conflict, where civilians face severe restrictions on movement and access to healthcare.