Arakan Army Orders Displaced Rohingya to Vacate Buthidaung Wards Again

By: Camp Correspondent

Buthidaung, 15 June 2025 — Rohingya Khobor

Rohingya families who had taken shelter in several wards of Buthidaung town are once again being forced to leave under a new directive issued by the Arakan Army (AA), triggering renewed panic and distress among an already traumatized community.

These families had fled during recent fighting and returned with the hope of reclaiming a piece of their former lives. But now, with no warning and no clear alternative, they are being told to move—again.

“We’ve already lost our homes, our relatives, and everything we had,” said a displaced Rohingya man currently staying in Ward 2. “We returned quietly and tried to rebuild, but now they are evicting us. Where are we supposed to go this time?”

Following the destruction of Buthidaung town and surrounding Rohingya villages earlier this year, thousands were displaced and forced to live in makeshift camps around areas like Sein Yin Pyin and Phone Nyo Lake. In recent months, the AA had allowed a limited number of these families to return to parts of Buthidaung, especially Wards 1 through 4.

Most of them were not original residents. Their relatives or neighbors had once lived there before fleeing to Bangladesh or Yangon amid violence. In their absence, displaced villagers moved in, cleaned the ruins, and attempted to create some sense of home again.

Now, even that fragile stability is crumbling.

“They told us we could stay,” said a woman who had resettled in Ward 3 with her children. “We repaired what we could. We cooked, we taught our kids to smile again. Now they say we must leave immediately. We have nowhere to go.”

No alternative site has been offered, and no official reason has been provided beyond vague security justifications. Residents say they are being treated like temporary tenants in a town they once called home.

Many fear that if these removals continue, another wave of displacement could follow—deepening the humanitarian crisis already suffocating northern Rakhine.

Community leaders and displaced families are appealing to both national authorities and international actors to intervene before it’s too late.

“We are tired of being moved like pieces on a board,” one resident said. “We need protection. We need our homes back. And most of all, we need to stop being treated as disposable.”