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Irrawaddy Ground Report Exposes Lies in Al Jazeera and UN-OHCHR Coverage of Alleged Htan Shauk Khan Massacre, Buthidaung
- globalarakannetwork
- Sep 16
- 7 min read
Report Translation
Global Arakan Network September 15, 2025
On September 15, 2025, The Irrawaddy (Burmese Edition) published an investigative analysis titled "A Visit to the So-Called Muslim Massacre Site in Htan Shauk Khan Village." This report powerfully illustrates how global media and international platforms, such as the United Nations, can distort and misrepresent on-the-ground realities.
The analysis is structured into seven sections: 1) Introduction, 2) Ground Situation in Htan Shauk Khan, 3) Conflict in Htan Shauk Khan, 4) Discovery of a Skeleton Near Htan Shauk Khan, 5) Population of Htan Shauk Khan, 6) Current Conditions of Htan Shauk Khan Villagers, and 7) Social Cohesion Between Arakanese and Muslim Communities. Please see the translated version of the original Burmese report below:
A Visit to the So-Called Muslim Massacre Site in Htan Shauk Khan Village
During the renewed conflict between the Myanmar military and the Arakanese, the Arakan Army (AA) was accused of massacring over 600 Muslim in Htan Shauk Khan village, Buthidaung Township. In August 2025, The Irrawaddy visited the village to investigate these allegations.
The trip to Htan Shauk Khan was organized by the AA, with several local journalists granted access. No foreign media outlets were included. AA spokesperson U Khaing Thukha explained:
“We haven’t invited foreign media or certain local outlets because the conflict is ongoing. If information leaks, there’s a risk of airstrikes targeting journalists. Due to these security threats, we prioritized inviting most immediate local media outlets.”
The alleged mass killing of Muslim in Htan Shauk Khan was reported by Muslim activists, organizations, and the Myanmar junta’s commission, claiming the AA was responsible. The AA refuted these accusations, asserting that the remains found were those of military personnel, not civilians. The incident reportedly occurred on May 2, 2024.
During the field investigation, The Irrawaddy visited Htan Shauk Khan, nearby areas where skeletal remains were reported, and interviewed detained military officers.
Ground Situation in Htan Shauk Khan
The Irrawaddy and other media outlets interviewed approximately 40 Htan Shauk Khan villagers brought by the AA, as well as other villagers from Htan Shauk Khan and nearby areas not escorted by the AA. The village is located about six miles from Buthidaung town, along the Buthidaung-Rathedaung road. Due to the conflict, no houses remain intact; the village is now a desolate expanse of broken bricks, damaged wood, and overgrown vegetation.
Near the village entrance, along the main road just another side of junta commission’s LIB-551, military uniforms, trousers, helmets, and other military gear were visible. U Swe Yaw Naw Bi, the village chairman, pointed to a site with only two brick pillars and debris, saying, “This was a mosque. Not a single house remains intact.”
In a nearby field adjacent to old residential areas, more military equipment was found, including human skulls, helmets, bulletproof vests, and military water bottles scattered around. In a waterlogged pit, partially covered with mud, skeletal remains were visible.
This site was referenced by some Muslim diaspora activist groups and the military junta as evidence of a “massacre.” An AA member retrieved items from the pit, including at least five skulls, around ten bulletproof vests, over ten bone fragments, military boots, and water bottles.
Conflict in Htan Shauk Khan
Fighting resumed in Rakhine State on November 13, 2023, with the AA attacking and seizing military bases. By early 2024, the AA launched offensives in Buthidaung Township, capturing the town by May 2, 2024. On that day, after seizing Military Operations Command 15, retreating military personnel, led by Colonel Kaung Myat, left a unit of about 50 soldiers in Htan Shauk Khan.
Colonel Kaung Myat and Colonel Aung Nay Myo from the 22nd Division joined Light Infantry Battalion 551, where intense fighting broke out on May 2. By the morning of May 3, unable to resist further, the military personnel, along with their families, entered Htan Shauk Khan, taking shelter in homes and fortifying defenses around the village, according to Colonel Kaung Myat.
Kaung Myat reported that some villagers were still present on May 2 but had fled by May 3. “The villagers left on their own, taking their belongings to nearby villages because they didn’t feel safe. By the time we set up positions, no villagers remained,” he said.
U Zaw Law Din, a Htan Shauk Khan villager who fled when the military entered, recounted: “The military surrounded the village. We discussed how to escape. From U Hla Pe village to the south, we heard loudspeakers calling, ‘Htan Shauk Khan villagers, come to us. We won’t harm you; we’ll help you. If you stay there, you’ll die.’ Hearing this, almost all villagers fled.”
Both U Zaw Law Din and Colonel Kaung Myat confirmed that the military tried to prevent villagers from fleeing. The calls came from U Hla Pe village, where the village administration and AA used loudspeakers to urge Htan Shauk Khan residents to evacuate.
“I personally called them in the Muslim language,” said U Maung Maung Aye, a Muslim and deputy township administrator in Maungdaw, showing a video of the evacuation efforts.
By May 4, 2024, after intense fighting, the military surrendered to the AA.
Skeletal Remains Near Htan Shauk Khan
During the conflict, over 100 soldiers and Muslim conscripts trained by the military died, their bodies buried haphazardly, according to Colonel Kaung Myat. On May 8, villagers returned and found all houses destroyed, with military and Muslim conscript bodies scattered across roads and homes.
U Zaw Law Din, who inspected the village post-conflict, said, “Four days after the fighting, I visited. The pit contained mostly military bodies, maybe one or two Muslim conscripts, but none were our villagers. Claims of 600 or 500 villagers killed are completely false.”
He added that bodies were found piled on a cart and scattered across the village, all belonging to soldiers.
Village chairman U Swe Yaw Naw Bi stated, “Only soldiers remained in the village. Claims on social media by Nay San Lwin are untrue.” Colonel Kaung Myat, who fought in the village, confirmed no villagers were present during the conflict, making civilian casualties impossible.
Additionally, Ansar Ullah, quoted by Al Jazeera as claiming the AA killed villagers, is not from Htan Shauk Khan but from Nan Yar Kone Koe Taw Seik village, six miles away.
Villagers from both areas confirmed Ansar Ullah, real name Anowar, son of U Abdul Hatim, fled to Bangladesh in 2017 during ARSA-military clashes and is not currently in the area. Nan Yar Kone villagers identified Anowar as an ARSA member, often seen armed in the forests.
Population of Htan Shauk Khan
According to the military’s 2023 census, Htan Shauk Khan had 114 households and 933 residents. Current records show 790 villagers remain in Buthidaung Township, 138 have left abroad, totaling 928. Claims of over 600 villagers being killed are illogical and false, as stated by over 160 Islamic religious leaders, youth, and community members in Maungdaw District.
A villager involved in the census said, “We know our people. If so many were missing, we’d know. Only about 100 are abroad, mostly in Bangladesh.”
The Arakan Rohingya National Council (ARNC)’s claim that the AA killed over 600 Muslim on May 2, 2024, is seen as an attempt to sow discord between Muslim, Arakanese, and other ethnic groups living harmoniously, according to villagers and religious leaders.
“We strongly oppose this. These claims must be retracted. They create hardship for us, pitting Arakanese against Muslims,” said U Zaw Law Din.
On August 23, Islamic leaders condemned the accusations as fabricated to disrupt ethnic harmony.
Current Conditions of Htan Shauk Khan Villagers
With the village destroyed, residents have relocated to nearby villages like Kin Taung and U Hla Pe, staying with relatives or in new settlements arranged by the AA. Only about ten households live in the new village, with most residing in nearby areas.
Villagers face significant challenges with food and shelter. U Nur Eissa Alam said, “The AA provided rice two or three times, but it’s difficult. We can’t farm like before; the old village and fields are far from where we are now.”
The AA plans to resettle villagers in the new village and provide shelter support.
Social Cohesion Between Muslim and Arakanese
The AA, controlling 14 townships in Rakhine State, including Buthidaung and Maungdaw, has established administrative systems. In Muslim villages, locals serve as administrators, deputies, secretaries, and committee members, with Muslim appointed to police, intelligence, and education roles.
In Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships where multi-ethnic groups like Arakanese, Muslims, Mro, Khamei, Daingnet, Hindus, deputy township administrators are Muslim, and some hold senior positions in local offices. The AA has formed auxiliary police units, including Muslim members equipped with weapons, as confirmed by Abu Kalam, a Muslim auxiliary police subunit commander.
Around 5,000 Muslim serve as administrators and staff under the AA’s revolutionary government in Maungdaw District. Unlike previous governments, which rejected Muslim applicants for civil service roles post-2012, the AA has included them in governance.
Naw Ji Mulla, a 36-year-old deputy county administrator in Buthidaung, said, “The Arakanese help us as much as they can. Everyone gets along harmoniously.”
Locals and Muslim officials urge maintaining the trust and harmony seen before the 2012 conflict, warning against divisive actions.
