Arakan Liberation Party (ALP) / Arakan National Council (ANC)
Reading Time: < 1 minuteFounded: ALP (1967); ANC (umbrella body, 2004)Base of Operations: Southern Rakhine; former ties to Thai borderIdeology: Rakhine nationalism; federal Myanmar frameworkObjective: Rakhine autonomy within federal union; not secessionist ➤ Order of Battle (ORBAT) Estimate Component Estimate Notes Total Armed Personnel 300–500 Mostly symbolic units; not combat active Leadership Based in Continue Reading
Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO)
Reading Time: < 1 minuteFounded: 1982 (dormant for periods)Base of Operations: Border region of Bangladesh–Myanmar (Cox’s Bazar, Teknaf side historically)Ideology: Secular Rohingya nationalismObjective: Restore political rights of Rohingyas in Arakan; reclaim homeland ➤ Order of Battle (ORBAT) Estimate Component Estimate Notes Total Fighters <500 Highly decentralised; some cells in refugee camps Weapons Obsolete small Continue Reading
Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA)
Reading Time: < 1 minuteArakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) Also Known As: Harakah al-Yaqin (former)Founded: 2016Base of Operations: Maungdaw–Buthidaung belt near Bangladesh borderIdeology: Islamist-Rohingya nationalist (Salafist leanings)Objective: Defend Rohingya population and reclaim rights in Rakhine State ➤ Order of Battle (ORBAT) Estimate Component Estimate Notes Total Fighters 500 – 1,000 Organised in village-level cells Continue Reading
Arakan Army (AA)
Reading Time: < 1 minuteAlso Known As: Arakan Liberation Army (in propaganda)Political Wing: United League of Arakan (ULA)Founded: 2009Base of Operations: Northern and Central Rakhine; Paletwa (Chin State); Western Sagaing (limited)Ideology: Rakhine ethno-nationalism; secular; anti-juntaObjective: Establish autonomous or independent Arakan state with AA/ULA as core governing force ➤ Order of Battle (ORBAT) Component Estimate Continue Reading
General Waker: The Uniformed Politician Who Overplayed His Hand
Reading Time: 4 minutesIn the theatre of Bangladeshi power politics, few actors have entered stage left with such flamboyance—and exited, or rather staggered—so quickly into the spotlight of public scorn as General Waker. His recent foray into political engineering, thinly veiled behind the façade of statecraft, has not merely backfired. It has become Continue Reading