Heavy fighting between Myanmar’s Arakan Army (AA) and a Rohingya armed faction along the Naf River has spilled across the border, leaving a Bangladeshi woman injured in Teknaf.
The clashes broke out on Saturday in Myanmar’s Totardwip area, opposite Cox’s Bazar’s Hwaikyang union, where intense gunfire rattled Bangladesh’s border communities.
Local residents said the first round of exchanges continued from 12pm to 12:30pm, followed by a second bout from 5pm to 6pm.
According to security sources, AA members were attacked by Arakan Rohingya Solidarity Army fighters while returning by trawler to one of their camps. AA forces then retaliated using small and medium-range weapons as well as light rocket-propelled launchers.
During the fighting, a stray bullet fired from Myanmar pierced into the 3rd ward of Hwaikyang’s Techhibridge area, hitting a woman named Chenuara Begum in the leg. Locals rushed her to Cox’s Bazar Sadar Hospital.
“I was walking in my yard in the afternoon when a bullet suddenly hit my leg. I fell to the ground instantly,” she recounted from her hospital bed.
Shopkeeper Mostak Ahmed said a bullet also punctured the tin wall of his shop. “We heard loud gunfire from across the river, then suddenly a bullet landed inside my shop. People panicked and ran for safety,” he said.
Hwaikyang Union Parishad Chairman Nur Ahmed Anwari confirmed the incident and urged the government to tighten border security. “We have informed higher authorities and requested rapid measures to ensure civilian safety,” he said.
Teknaf Upazila Nirbahi Officer Sheikh Ehsan Uddin said authorities are investigating the incident.
Local residents have demanded urgent and increased protection along the border as cross-fire incidents become more frequent.
