by Hafizur Rahman
Maungdaw, Arakan State — October 6, 2026
New houses are being built for Rakhine families on land where Rohingya villages once stood in northern Maungdaw Township, according to local Rohingya residents, raising renewed concerns over land belonging to families who remain displaced.
Residents told Rohingya Khobor that construction is taking place along the road between Kyee Kan Pyin and Kyi Kan Chaung. They said land at former Rohingya village sites has been cleared and houses are being built for Rakhine families displaced by fighting elsewhere in Arakan State.
Local sources said 55 Rakhine families displaced from Rathedaung and Ponnagyun townships were brought to the La Pho Khaung relief camp in Maungdaw last week. The families are reportedly expected to move into newly built houses in the area.
Residents said bulldozers had been used to clear some of the land and that plots of about 20 by 40 feet were being prepared for individual families.
“Those villages were burned and destroyed during the violence in 2017. Now we are seeing new houses being built there for Rakhine families. It is painful for Rohingya people who once lived on this land,” one local Rohingya resident said.
Local sources also alleged that some Rakhine families had been moved into houses previously occupied by Rohingya families who fled during the fighting in 2024.
“Many Rohingya families left with only what they could carry because they were trying to save their lives,” another local source said. “Their houses were left empty. Now other families are being moved into those homes while the original owners remain displaced.”
Rohingya Khobor could not independently verify the reported arrival of the 55 families, the ownership of individual plots and houses, or whether the construction and relocation are part of an official ULA/AA policy.
Similar allegations have previously emerged from other parts of Maungdaw Township.
Local sources said Rakhine settlements had also been established on former Rohingya village sites in northern Maungdaw in late 2025. More recently, residents reported construction and resettlement at former Rohingya village sites in southern Maungdaw during September 2026.
Residents also alleged that some newly settled families have been allocated farmland and provided with agricultural equipment.
The latest construction has increased concern among Rohingya residents and displaced families over what will happen to homes and land they left behind.
For hundreds of thousands of Rohingya living outside Myanmar, the question of whether they will be able to return to their original homes and land remains central to any future return.
Rohingya Khobor has not obtained a response from the ULA/AA regarding the latest allegations.
