Geneva
Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has announced that it will suspend its medical activities in Rakhine state in northern Myanmar due to an “extreme escalation of conflict” between ethnic armed groups and the military.
Clashes have been ongoing in Rakhine state since the Arakan Army (AA) attacked security forces in November last year, ending a ceasefire that had largely held since the 2021 military coup.
AA fighters have seized control of large swaths of territory, putting further pressure on the junta as it battles the opposition in other parts of the country.
On June 27, MSF announced that it was suspending its “medical humanitarian activities” in northern Rakhine State, citing “extreme escalation of the conflict, indiscriminate violence and severe restrictions on humanitarian access.”
The suspension was announced to affect 14 mobile clinics in Rathedaung, Buthidaung and Maungdaw townships.
The charity added that fighting has affected the “routine medical services” of MSF teams in central and northern Rakhine state since November last year, making it difficult to move medical and other supplies.
Many roads and waterways along rivers in Rakhine State have been blocked by the military and the AA, denying villagers any option to flee to safety.
In May, the AA said it had taken control of the town of Buthidaung in northern Rakhine state, home to many of the persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority.
Rohingya settler groups subsequently accused the AA of forcing Rohingya to flee, then looting and burning their homes.
