by RK Desk
Werathani, Arakan State — September 24, 2026
Displaced families sheltering in Werathani Township say Myanmar junta naval operations have made it difficult for them to fish and travel by boat, cutting into a vital source of food and income.
Development Media Group (DMG) reported on September 22 that residents near Hsintetmaw, Soemelkyi and Kalarthein villages described gunfire from junta vessels and feared taking boats out to sea. The outlet said Hsintetmaw was sheltering more than 100 displaced households, comprising over 400 people. Rohingya Khobor has not independently verified that count or how many households have stopped fishing.
A displaced resident told DMG that his family had sold belongings after fleeing Sittwe and that he later earned money working on fishing boats. He said the reported naval activity had made that work harder to find.
DMG also reported that junta personnel detained five Muslim fishermen near Soemelkyi and Kalarthein on September 20, questioned them and released them that evening. Their identities and the grounds for the reported detention have not been independently confirmed. DMG did not establish whether all five were Rohingya.
The reported loss of access to fishing raises an immediate question for families who depend on the sea: how they are obtaining food and income while they remain displaced. The extent of that disruption, and whether assistance is reaching the affected households, needs further verification.
