One Person Dead Following Torture of Six Arakan IDPs Arrested in Sittwe

News ၊ May 12, 2026

Burmese military personnel seen arriving in Sittwe, Rakhine State, in October 2012. (photo - EPA)

Reliable sources report that one person has died after military council forces raided several monasteries in junta-controlled Sittwe and tortured six displaced Rakhine civilians taken into custody.

The detainees have been identified as U Kyaw Than Hlaing, Ko Aye Kyaw, Ko Mya Tun, Ko Aung Aung, and two others who were seeking refuge at the Citta Thukha Kammatthana Monastery in Sittwe.

According to reports, at approximately 9:00 PM on May 9, a combined force of about 100 military council personnel conducted "guest list" inspections at the Citta Thukha, Mogok, and Thayet Oak monasteries.

During the inspections, six displaced Rakhine men at the Citta Thukha Kammatthana Monastery were arrested under the pretext of having "incomplete documentation." Sources confirm that Ko Aung Aung died as a result of severe torture inflicted during interrogation following their arrest.

The targeted raids on religious sites have sparked high levels of anxiety among both the displaced civilian populations and the monks residing in these monasteries.

This incident follows a separate crackdown on May 1, where military council troops arrested three Muslim women from the Maw Thi Nyar Muslim refugee camp in Sittwe Township, also citing a lack of proper identification.

Source@APM