YANGON, Myanmar (AP) — Myanmar’s government on Sunday reported fierce fighting in the western state of Rakhine, where the army has been conducting counterinsurgency operations since nine police officers were killed in attacks on posts along the border with Bangladesh last month. It said one soldier and at least six attackers were killed, adding that an army officer died in a later battle against 500 armed men, which ended when two air force helicopters joined the fight. Myanmar’s 1.1 million Rohingya Muslims are the majority in northern Rakhine but they are denied citizenship, with many majority Buddhists regarding them as illegal immigrants from neighboring Bangladesh. "New satellite images not only confirm the widespread destruction of Rohingya villages but show that it was even greater than we first thought," said Brad Adams, Asia director at Human Rights Watch. Six bodies of attackers were recovered in the aftermath, while 36 other people believed to be involved were arrested.
Eight people are killed and 36 are arrested in clashes between the Myanmar Army and what are believed to be Rohingya insurgents in Rakhine State.