A growing exodus of Rohingya civilians is underway from northern Rakhine State as residents of Buthidaung Township flee what they describe as systematic abuse, starvation, and forced displacement at the hands of the Arakan Army (AA).

Since April 14, new footage and eyewitness testimony have surfaced, showing dozens of Rohingya families making the perilous journey over the rugged Mayu mountain range toward northern Maungdaw, hoping to find refuge across the Bangladesh border.

“They burned down our homes. Now we have nothing left—not even food or shelter,” said one elderly Rohingya woman near the border. “We’re living like displaced people, with no one to help us. If we don’t escape, we might die of hunger.”

According to multiple survivors, the AA’s campaign of control over Rohingya communities has intensified, marked by forced evictions, arbitrary taxation, and coerced labor. Youths are reportedly being recruited under duress into militia ranks, while villagers who resist are often detained, assaulted, or worse.

“AA forced us to leave through the Mayu mountain route,” said another survivor. “But halfway through the forest, they abandoned us.” She claimed that ARSA fighters later helped them reach Maungdaw.
Human rights monitors warn that this pattern reflects broader trends of weaponized displacement, where fear, hunger, and statelessness are used as tools of control.
“They make us work, collect taxes, and arrest us without reason,” said a father now hiding near the border. “Life has become unbearable.”
Those fleeing describe apocalyptic conditions in Buthidaung: no food, no medicine, and no safe passage. With roads blocked and markets shuttered, essential goods have vanished. Entire villages are now reportedly ghost towns, emptied of their residents under threat or coercion.
“There’s no work, no food, and no one to protect us,” said an elder. “If this continues, we’ll die—not from bullets, but from hunger.”
The displaced are now scattered across forested areas and informal camps along the Maungdaw-Bangladesh border, living without shelter, clean water, or medical assistance.

Community leaders and human rights groups are calling for immediate international attention, demanding an independent investigation into the Arakan Army’s treatment of Rohingya civilians. Despite the AA’s public declarations of ethnic unity, reports on the ground reveal the continued marginalization and brutalization of Rohingya communities.
“The AA cannot claim to represent freedom or equality while persecuting an entire population,” said a Rohingya advocate monitoring the situation. “What we are witnessing is not just displacement—it is a slow-motion erasure.”
As the humanitarian crisis deepens, regional observers fear that without urgent intervention, another wave of stateless suffering will spiral out of control.

BOB Post