Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army
| Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army | |
|---|---|
| Participant in the Rohingya insurgency in Western Myanmar | |
|
Motto: "In the name of Allah, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful." | |
| Active | October 2016 – present |
| Ideology | Rohingya nationalism |
| Leaders | Ata Ullah[1][2] |
| Area of operations |
Rakhine State, Myanmar-Bangladesh border |
| Size | 500[3] |
| Opponents | |
| Battles and wars | |
The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (Burmese: အာရ်ကန်ရိုဟင်ဂျာ ကယ်တင်ရေးတပ်မတော်; abbreviated ARSA),[4][5][6] also known by its former name Harakah al-Yaqin[7][8] and by its former English name the Faith Movement,[7] is a Rohingya insurgent group active in the jungles of northern Rakhine State, Myanmar. It is led by Ata Ullah, a Rohingya man who was born in Karachi, Pakistan, and grew up in Mecca, Saudi Arabia.[1][2]
According to the lead interrogator of ARSA suspects jailed in Sittwe, Police Captain Yan Naing Latt, the group's goal is to create a "democratic Muslim state for the Rohingya". Although there is no firm evidence linking the ARSA to foreign Islamist groups, the Burmese government suspects that the group is involved with and subsidized by foreign Islamists.[9] The Burmese government has also accused the ARSA of murdering 34 to 44 civilians and kidnapping 22 others in reprisal attacks against those the ARSA have perceived as government collaborators.[10][11] These claims have been denied by the ARSA, who have stated that they "have no links to terrorist groups or foreign Islamists" and that their "only target is the oppressive Burmese regime".[4]
History
According to Rohingya locals and Burmese security officials, the group began approaching Rohingya men from various villages for recruitment six months prior to their first attack in October, and trained them across the border in Bangladesh.[9]
In October 2016, the group, calling itself Harakah al-Yaqin (or the Faith Movement in English), claimed responsibility for attacks on Burmese border posts along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, which left 9 border officers and 4 soldiers dead.[12][13]
On 15 November 2016, the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Armed Forces) announced that a total of 69 insurgents had been killed by security forces in the recent fighting.[14]
On 14 December 2016, the International Crisis Group (ICG) reported that in interviews, the leaders of the group claimed to have links to private individuals in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. The ICG also reported that Rohingya villagers had been "secretly trained" by Afghan and Pakistani fighters.[1][15]
On 22 June 2017, Burmese state media reported that three insurgents had been killed by security forces in a raid on an insurgent camp supposedly belonging to the ARSA, as part of a two-day "area clearance operation" by the government. Authorities confiscated gunpowder, ski masks and wooden rifles suspected to have been used for training.[10][16]
Press statements
On 17 October 2016, the Faith Movement released a press statement online. In a roughly five minute video, a man flanked by armed fighters reads from a sheet of paper:
| “ |
Citizens of Arakan, citizens of Myanmar, and citizens of the world. It is no longer a secret that the Rohingyas are the most persecuted ethnic minority on earth. Throughout the last six decades, we have been subjected to genocidal mass-killings, and all kinds of atrocities in the hands of the successive Burmese tyrannical regimes. The world has chosen to ignore us! Then again, the "resourceful" world has apparently failed to save us! We, the sons of Arakan soil who are compelled by our dire situation to make our own destiny through uprising, self-determination in self-defence. We stand as an independent body which is free from all elements of terror in any nature but seeks fundamental but legitimate rights and other justice for all Arakanese including our innocent Rohingyas and other civilians dying from the continuous military assaults. We categorically state that our people have chosen to free themselves from oppressors, from the tragic deaths in the Bay of Bengal, in the Thai jungles and in the hands of human traffickers. We are also resolved to defend our mothers, sisters, elderly, children and ourselves. We shall not rest until all our desired goals are achieved with the genuine help of the civilised world. |
” |
Six other videos were released online by the group between 10 and 27 October 2016.[17]
On 29 March 2017, the group released a press statement under a new name, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA). The document included demands made to the Burmese government.[18]
References
- 1 2 3 J, Jacob (15 December 2016). "Rohingya militants in Rakhine have Saudi, Pakistan links, think tank says".
- 1 2 Millar, Paul (16 February 2017). "Sizing up the shadowy leader of the Rakhine State insurgency". Southeast Asia Globe Magazine. Retrieved 24 February 2017.
- ↑ CNN, Katie Hunt. "Myanmar Air Force helicopters fire on armed villagers in Rakhine state". CNN. Retrieved 15 November 2016.
- 1 2 Freeman, Joe. "Myanmar’s Rohingya Insurgency Strikes Pragmatic Note". VOA. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
- ↑ "Rohingya ‘Army’ stresses right to self-defence in first statement". Frontier Myanmar. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
- ↑ "Myanmar's armed Rohingya militants deny terrorist links". Fox News. 28 March 2017. Retrieved 30 March 2017.
- 1 2 "Myanmar: A New Muslim Insurgency in Rakhine State". Crisis Group. 15 December 2016. Retrieved 23 January 2017.
- ↑ Lewis, Simon (14 December 2016). "Myanmar's Rohingya insurgency has links to Saudi, Pakistan: report". Reuters. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
- 1 2 Lone, Wa; Lewis, Simon; Das, Krishna N. (9 March 2017). "Myanmar Says Foreign Islamists Instigated Series of Attacks". Reuters. Retrieved 10 March 2017.
- 1 2 McDonald, Taylor (22 June 2017). "Rohingya ‘insurgent’ camp raided - Asean Economist". Asean Economist. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
- ↑ "Myanmar sees insurgents behind Rohingya killings in northwest". Reuters. 2017. Retrieved 21 July 2017.
- ↑ "Myanmar policemen killed in Rakhine border attack". BBC News. 9 October 2016. Retrieved 12 October 2016.
- ↑ "Rakhine unrest leaves four Myanmar soldiers dead". BBC News. 12 October 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
- ↑ Slodkowski, Antoni (15 November 2016). "Myanmar army says 86 killed in fighting in northwest". Reuters India. Retrieved 17 November 2016.
- ↑ "Rohingya insurgency a 'game-changer' for Myanmar". Bangkok Post. Retrieved 15 December 2016.
- ↑ "Myanmar forces kill 3 in raid on 'terrorist training camps': State media - Times of India". The Times of India. Retrieved 19 July 2017.
- ↑ McPherson, Poppy (17 November 2016). "‘It will blow up’: fears Myanmar's deadly crackdown on Muslims will spiral out of control". The Guardian. Retrieved 11 December 2016.
- ↑ "Statement of Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army". www.rohingyablogger.com. Retrieved 5 April 2017.