“Operation Backdoor”

“Operation Backdoor”

“A lot of Bengali from nearby local villages are involved in October 9th terrorist attack on our camp”, said by a Lance Corporal of Kyee Kan Pyin Border Guard Police Camp.



“This is a motorbike of my friend – another lance corporal – Zarni Htike, he was killed in this place during the terrorist attack” pointing at a place 1000 yards away from the camp and a motorbike parked inside.

“This is the place where five of our colleagues (police officers) were also killed brutally (cut-throat) by terrorists in their surprise attack, they (police) couldn’t even shoot a single shot, if they can, we would have heard it and help them immediately, if so they might still live” another border guard police said.

In early morning (pass midnight) of 9th October 2016, estimatedly over 300 Bengali Terrorists attacked and overrun Kyee Kan Pyin Central Command of Myanmar-Bangladesh Border Guard Police and two other guard posts. Killed 9 border guard polices and took away lots of weapons and ammunition from Armory. This terrorist attack has started the destabilization in the Northern Rakhine State.  

Northern Rakhine State, mainly a Maung Daw District consists of Maungdaw, Butheedaung  and Ratheedaung townships, located in west of Myanmar bordering to Bangladesh, is dominated by majority Bengali people (who they like to called themselves a Rohingya), whose Myanmar people and the Government recognized them as ‘migrants’ from the neighboring Bangladesh, and rejected the made-up name Rohingya.

According to the official records, there are 536 migrant Bengali villages with population of 760,000+ and there are also 349 native Rakhine villages with population of 120,000+ in Northern Rakhine State.

The terrorist attack was plotted, financially supported and lead by Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO) a well-known Taliban loyalist terrorist organization operating in Bangladesh border area. RSO original plan was to attack 6 border guard police posts at the same time, however they managed to attack three posts at D-Day including Kyee Kan Pyin Central Command, hence they also managed to access to Armory and swooped 48 guns, 6624 bullets, 47 bayonets and 164 ammos.  

“It has been a long time that no one dare to attack the border guard police posts in this area, so that security might have been weaken, hence we got it all by surprise” one of the border guards said. “polices from guard post might have been killed before mid-night, there is no way Bengalis can approached to central post without encountering with them first.

"Frontal assault on the main gate (of Kyee Kan Pyin Central Command) was just a trick, because when we all run to defend the main gate, they (Bengalis) attacked the central post inside” one of the defenders of Kyee Kan Pyin said, “central post was lost in no time - overrun by hundreds of Bengalis coming in human waves, we have to withdrew up to 100 yards from the central post, they (Bengalis) took advantage of that, forcibly opened the armory there and looted all the guns and bullets, and withdraw from the battle”, he continued.

The real intention of the Bengalis was to access to armory, so that they even ignored a residence of the Commander of Border Guard which is located very closely to the central post, but they just laid siege of the central post did cover shots to the post defender polices who are already withdrew to 100 yards away from the post, and raided all the weapons from armory.

The Terrorist have properly planned their attack as, Bengalis even did mine attack and ambush on the reinforcement military convoy, who responded immediately to Kyee Kan Pyin attack, so that trucks were damaged by detonated mines and reinforcement was delayed, “reinforcement was responded immediately after the army received a phone call from Kyee Kan Pyin soon after the attack, convoy heading towards Kyee Kan Pyin was attacked by detonated mine and ambushed by Bengalis, but they withdrew when army counter attack” one of the army officers explained. However the intention of ambush seems to be success as that delayed the reinforcement arrival to Kyee Kan Pyin for a couple of hours, as the distance between Maungdaw army command and Kyee Kan Pyin Border guard command is 40 minutes’ drive.

After the October 9th attack, Rumors were spreading like a wild fire, which pushed most of the native Rakhine to abandoned their villages and take refuge in safer places. “We had to flee from our villages as we heard many rumors that Bengali terrorists are also planning to lay siege on Rakhine villages, Bengali villages to Rakhine villages ratio was 20 to 1, there are just too many, the worst is now they have the guns” one of the native Rakhine who fled his village said.  

Groups of native Rakhine people have fled to the military posts nearby (and/or) nearest towns to take refuge. As Bengali villages to Rakhine villages’ ratio was 20 to 1 in NRS, native Rakhine have fled the area in fear of possible siege and attack from Bengali terrorists in the time of chaos (as it happened in recent history).

However, some of the native Rakhine villages located close to the main road (and/or) military and police posts are not running. “We are patrolling and guarding our village in day and night shifts; we are going to report to the police immediately if we find something suspicious, we can defend our village from Bengali terrorists attack (until the police arrives for aid)” a village leader from one of the villages located 30 minutes’ drive away from nearest police station.

It seems that most of the Bengali villages in NRS are still keeping their villages, however some Bengali villages nearby to the October 9th attack have fled from the area, some rumors said some of them (Bengali) have run to nearby Bengali villages (and/or) some of them have fled to the jungle nearby to their own villages.

But the Government security forces, (who are sweeping the area in hunt for the Terrorists), have noticed that there are no men left in the Bengali villages, they only found women and children there who are refusing to answer any questions, which constrained the operation.

 “We heard that those Bengali men came back to the village at night, and disappeared by the day, it is challenging to conduct search operation at night in those villages” one police officer, a member of operation – sweeping Bengali villages in terrorist hunt – said.

The structure of Bengali villages are like – compounds are covered with blind-shaded walls, and the houses have only a few windows, so that inside of the houses were dark even in the day light, there are about 7 to 20 family members in the Bengali houses, hence there are at least hundreds to thousands villagers in one Bengali villages. The villages located close to October 9th attack locations, are in-fact long stretched villages and overlapping each other.

On October 11th, one of the joint-search convoy of Border Guard police and Myanmar Military, conducting man-hunt operation in the area, have been ambushed by Bengali villagers lead by Bengali terrorists carrying guns, swords and sticks. The ambush has killed 5 army soldiers who are on the front line.

The ambush was plotted systematically by Bengalis as, some Bengali pre-positioned on the higher ground overlooking motorcar road, have started shooting at the convoy by surprise, to stop the convoy and two groups of Bengalis have assaulted the joint-force from left and right by surprise as well. The attackers also managed to took away two guns from the dead soldiers.

“About 50 Bengali (Terrorists) have chopped down the trees and blocked the roads just outside my village, so that I sent one of my men to stop them and tell them not to do that, they refused and pointing the sword at my man, my man said he knew some of them – who are from Kyet Yoe Pyin village, however my man has to run back from them” U Maung Maung (not a real name) a village leader told the Myanmar Review Journal, U Maung Maung is a Bengali Musilm and village leader of one of the Bengali villages in the area.

 “They said – I am helping the Myanmar Government, so I have sided with the government, then they are threatening my life after I tried to stop them from blocking the roads with chopped down trees. There are many life threatening messages from foreign numbers coming-in to my Viber, saying they will cut my throat. So I have to uninstall the Viber from my phone now” U Maung Maung continued.
   
It is assumed that attackers of October 9th attack have divided into several groups, some of them may have hiding in the jungle of Mayyu Mountain range, and some of them may have hiding in the Bengali villages.

After the October 9th attack, the military helicopters have been flown in and landing continuously to Kyee Kan Pyin border guard command, carrying battalions wearing badges from Myanmar - Western Military Command. The front-line defense Brigade has also established in Maungdaw area immediately, the infantry lines are sweeping the Bengali villages and many of the battalions are also climbing the Mayyu mountain range joining the terrorist-hunt operation, one of the Rakhine natives (from Pha-Wut Chaung village) said.

Actually, there are two Bengali terrorists captured alive in October 9th attack, and Border Guard Bangladesh BGB also captured and handover two suspected terrorists who ran into Bangladesh, so that Myanmar Border Guard Police have four terrorists in their custody now. According to interrogation with 4 terrorists, police have followed the lead, search and arrested 29 suspects who might involve with terror in Rakhine State (until 17th October 2016).
   
On October 12th, there was a small skirmish between Bengali terrorists and the Myanmar Infantry units who are sweeping the War-Bate Bengali village, however Bengali attackers have torched the village and withdrew from the battle. On October 13th, Myanmar army has thoroughly searched the same village and found guns and ammunition from burnt houses, and also found bullets, RSO banners and ammos from one of the houses belongs to a village leader cum mullah of the War-Bate village. Army also found some documents from his house which includes three sketch maps of the Kyee kan Pyin Border Guard Command center.

“Since the village leader is involve, it is possible that most of the villagers from this village are also involved in October 9th attack” commented by one of the military officers participated in the operation. “The village is totally deserted, but we saw three people when we entered the village, and they ran when we ask them to come near, they ran through some shrimps-ponds at the back of the village towards some village rows a bit far from here, later on we saw fire-smoke coming up from three houses at the corner of the village, I am sure they were the one who torched the houses, to cover-up whatever they have hidden in those houses”, he continued.    

He also said “we have to sweep and clear all the villages to search for October 9th attackers and it is also important to retrieve all the weapons they looted. The whole area will be in chaos until we retrieved the weapons.”

“If you are living in our country, you better live under our laws and orders; you have to live with that otherwise you should get the hell out of our country”
“You must learn to live under our laws and orders, you must live under existing laws, we will take action on whoever can’t live with our laws and orders, we mean it this time” Lieutenant General Kyaw Swe, Union Minister for Ministry of Home Affairs, declared recently in his visit to Maungdaw.

Currently in Maugdaw, there are no traffic on the connecting roads to villages, all the roadside villages are also quiet and look creepy.
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Translated from “An anti-terrorism military operation in western border of Myanmar” (Northern Rakhine State) (Reported by Nay Yi (aka) Ye Moe) appeared on The 19th October 2016 Myanmar Review Journal issue.

Translated by Wanna More
Original post in Myanmar language