Sounds of heavy firing and shelling from Myanmar were heard daylong on Thursday in Teknaf of Cox’s Bazar, causing fresh tension among the local people after days of break as fighting between the Myanmar army and the ethnic Arakan Army continued.
The residents of Teknaf said sounds of heavy firing and shelling were heard on the Hnila and Whykong borders, while airstrikes were also reported some two kilometres inside Myanmar territory.
A Myanmar national from Rakhine told New Age that firing and shelling continued in their area between the AA and Myanmar Army in the Bolibazar area.
Witnesses in Teknaf also saw Myanmar gunships using artillery.
Hnila union parishad chairman Rashed Mahmud Ali told New Age that they heard sounds of gunshots and explosions between the early hours and afternoon.
The Border Guard Bangladesh’s Teknaf battalion commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Mohiuddin Ahmed, said they had kept their forces on standby and were observing the situation closely.
Myanmar-based Arakan Army on Tuesday claimed to have taken complete control of the junta’s 9th Central Military Training School based in Minbya Township, Rakhine State, after 10 days of intense fighting, according to Thailand-based news portal Irrawaddy.
Most residents and junta administrators have reportedly fled Sittwe as AA forces advance on the state capital.
New Age
