Maungdaw | October 9, 2025 — Local Residents’ Report

The drug mafia terrorist Arakan Army (AA) has again shown its true face , not a liberation force, but a network of looters and extortionists feeding off Muslims and Rohingyas in Arakan (Rakhine).

Locals in Maungdaw reveal that the AA has illegally seized shops and property belonging to the historic Jama Masjid, a nearly 200 years old mosque founded in 1818 by Ali Hussaung (F) Moninchi. The mosque, built on land donated by his family, long survived wars and regimes without losing its assets, until the terrorist AA’s arrival.

Confiscation of Mosque Property

On October 5, 2025, AA’s township administrator summoned mosque trustees and ordered half of the shop rent to be paid directly to the AA, while only the rest could go to the mosque fund. Each of the 22 shops near the mosque was taxed 200,000 kyats per month, and 44 more shops on Minbagyi Road were completely confiscated.

These shops once supported mosque upkeep and local livelihoods. Now, the AA pockets the income, calling it “administrative collection.” Residents call it what it is , robbery under occupation. Even previous junta governments, known for repression, never stole from mosques.

“The government once shut the mosque but never stole its rent. The AA does both , closes the mosque and loots its property,” – said a former trustee.

Rohingya Properties Looted

During the Battle of Maungdaw in August 2024, the AA forced thousands of Rohingyas to flee. When the town emptied, over 300 cars and 5,000 motorcycles disappeared , all registered to Rohingya owners.

Locals now see senior AA leaders riding those same motorcycles, including a luxury Thailand bike worth 150 million kyats, stolen from the son of late ward administrator U Hla Thein (Mawji Ullah).

U Hla Thein was assassinated by the AA months earlier , another victim of their reign of terror.

Looting Behind the Mask of Liberation

The drug mafia terrorist Arakan Army (AA) continues to seize homes, shops, and lands of Rohingyas who fled to Bangladesh or other cities, labeling them “ownerless.” Their properties are occupied or sold to fund the AA’s narco operations.

Today Maungdaw lives in fear — its sacred mosque Looted, its people dispossessed, its leaders silenced.

Analysts say the AA’s so-called revolution is nothing more than a criminal empire built on drugs, theft, and intimidation. The drug mafia terrorist Arakan Army is not liberating Arakan, it is bleeding it dry.