A Bangladeshi citizen was critically injured on Thursday morning after triggering a landmine believed to have been planted by Arakan Army (AA) inside Myanmar territory, near Ukhiya border in Cox’s Bazar district.
The victim, identified as 32-year-old Bodi Alam, is a resident of Balukhali Jumer Chhara area under Palongkhali Union in Ukhiya Upazila.
The incident occurred around 10am when Alam went to fish in Naf River, situated just behind the Balukhali Border Outpost (BOP) of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB).
During his fishing, he crossed approximately 700 metres into Myanmar territory, where he detonated the landmine.
The explosion caused catastrophic injuries, severely damaging Alam’s right leg and the right side of his body.
Residents rushed to the scene, rescued him from the border area, and initially took him to Kutupalong MSF Hospital in Ukhiya.
As his condition rapidly deteriorated, attending doctors referred him to Chittagong Medical College Hospital (CMCH) for advanced emergency treatment.
Lieutenant Colonel Md Zohirul Islam, commanding officer of Ukhiya Battalion (64 BGB), confirmed the incident.
He noted that BGB had been informed of the explosion occurring behind Balukhali BOP while the victim was fishing in Naf River. He added that preliminary reports indicate the blast was caused by a landmine previously planted by the Arakan Army within Myanmar territory.
The BGB commander noted that the higher authorities have been formally notified of the matter, and necessary legal and administrative procedures are currently underway.
He also urged the frontier population to exercise the utmost caution and restrict their movements near the border.
The incident highlights a growing and deadly hazard along Bangladesh-Myanmar border, where landmine risks have escalated due to the ongoing conflict in Myanmar’s Rakhine State.
Border residents are increasingly falling victim to these hidden explosives while engaging in daily livelihood activities such as fishing, collecting firewood, or farming.
This latest blast is part of a worrying spike in border casualties over recent months. On 28 July, a 40-year-old Bangladeshi man named Md Abdul Karim was critically injured, losing his left leg below the knee, in a landmine explosion approximately 100 metres inside Myanmar territory near Arakan Army-controlled Aung Tha Paya post, situated between border pillars 46 and 47 along Naikhongchhari frontier in Bandarban.
Earlier, on 24 June, a 35-year-old man identified as Shafiul Alam was wounded in a landmine blast in the border hills of Ghumdhum Union in Naikhongchhari, succumbing to his injuries on the way to the hospital.
On 9 June, Abdul Khalek, a 30-year-old resident of Kutupalong-1 Rohingya Camp, was killed in another border landmine explosion.
The violence has also claimed younger lives; on 24 May, a devastating landmine blast between border pillars 41 and 42 of the same frontier claimed the lives of three members of Tanchangya community.
This followed an incident on 2 June, where a 12-year-old boy named Sotnaing Tanchangya was killed by an abandoned mortar shell explosion near the Tuingajhiri border in Naikhongchhari.
These consecutive tragedies have left frontier communities in a state of deep panic and insecurity.
Residents have urgently appealed to Bangladeshi authorities to implement more effective security measures along the borders and to launch public awareness programmes regarding the dangers of landmines.
