The Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) and the Rohingya Solidarity Organization (RSO) are armed Rohingya groups responsible for killings, looting and extortion for years.

But their top leaders weren’t arrested until last week. On the other hand, since last year, the Arakan Army (AA) has been committing atrocities against the Rohingya—continuing even as I write this.

At least 2,500 Rohingya have been killed in Myanmar. Many Rohingya women have been subjected to sexual violence. At least 300,000 have been displaced. Thousands of Rohingya homes have been burned to the ground, and at least 100,000 people have been forced to flee to Bangladesh to save their lives. Every day, Rohingya houses and land are being illegally seized.

Yet, the United Nations and the governments of Bangladesh and the US are supporting the Arakan Army.

Since the Myanmar junta’s crackdown in 2021, ARSA helped the military with forced inscriptions to fight the Arakan Army, a non-Muslim armed group that has captured a major part of the Rakhine State.

It is also believed that ARSA terrorists were part of the jihadist alliance that took part in the July-August riots and arms looting from police stations in Bangladesh.

Jamaat-backed militant group Jama’atul Ansar Fil Hindal Sharqiya is also linked to the Rohingya terrorist groups like ARSA and RSO. The Jama’atul Ansar terrorists were trained by the Kuki-Chin National Army in the deep forests of Bandarban and Khagrachhari.

Based on intelligence, a team of RAB-11 conducted a drive in the Siddhirganj area of Narayanganj, and Natun Bazar area of Mymensingh on March 16 and arrested ARSA chief Ata Ullah alias Abu Ammar alias Jununi alias Hafiz Tohar and nine others.

Of them, Ata Ullah and six others were produced before a Narayanganj court and were put on a 10-day remand in two cases.

Who is Ata Ullah?

was known for carrying out coordinated attacks on the Myanmar military and border guard police in October 2016, following which the Myanmar Army launched a crackdown, resulting in a mass exodus of the Rohingya into Bangladesh.

His father, a Muslim from northern Rakhine State, went to Karachi, where Ata Ullah was born. The family then moved to Saudi Arabia, and he grew up in Mecca, receiving a madrasa education. Ata Ullah disappeared from Saudi Arabia in 2012 shortly after violence erupted in Rakhine State. 

With the help of Al-Qaeda, Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi militants linked to RSO, JMB, HuJI-B, and Hizb ut-Tahrir (HuT), Ata Ullah formed Harakah al-Yaqin (HaY or Faith Movement).

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The group also has a senior Islamic scholar with it in Maungdaw, a Rohingya from Saudi Arabia, Mufti Ziabur Rahman, who brings religious legitimacy to operations and has the authority to issue fatwas. 

From 2016 to March 2025, HaY (later renamed ARSA) got support from the Bangladesh Army’s intelligence agency (DGFI) and local militant groups.

ARSA gained prominence after the rise of the Islamic State and AQIS in Bangladesh from 2013 to 2016, and Ata Ullah remained disconnected from law enforcement agencies due to patronization by the DGFI. The group reigned terror in the refugee camps, resulting in the deaths of numerous Rohingyas, including Mohib Ullah.

His gang also got support from the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) in Bandarban in 2018 and onwards.

Insiders say the police’s CTTC wing arrested Ata Ullah several years ago but was forced to release him on the orders of DGFI officers.

UN vows support

On March 14, United Nations chief António Guterres and Chief Adviser Muhammad Yunus visited the Cox’s Bazar refugee camps and spoke at a public meeting, followed by an iftar party. In his speech, Yunus promised to start their repatriation in a year.

Guterres vowed to do everything in his power to prevent further hardship as drastic aid cuts threaten food supplies and other critical relief efforts.

He described Cox’s Bazar as “ground zero” for the impact of these cuts, warning of a looming humanitarian disaster if immediate action is not taken.

“We are at risk of cutting the food rations in this camp,” he said. “That would be an unmitigated disaster that we cannot accept because people will suffer and even people will die.”

The UN aid efforts are in jeopardy following funding reductions announced by major donors, including the United States and several European nations.

On the same day, RSO and ARSA lauded the UN chief and Yunus for their efforts to bring the refugee crisis to the global stage.

Insiders say the Rohingya armed groups were working together with the Bangladesh government and intelligence agencies.

Aid cuts

On March 7, the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) warned of a critical funding shortfall for its emergency response operations in Bangladesh, jeopardizing food assistance for over one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh.

Without urgent new funding, monthly rations must be halved to US$6 per person, down from $12.50 per person—just as refugees prepare to observe Eid, marking the end of Ramadan.

All Rohingya receive vouchers that are redeemed for their choice of food at designated retailers in the camps. To sustain full rations, WFP urgently requires $15 million for April, and $81 million until the end of 2025. In 2023, severe funding constraints forced WFP to reduce rations from $12 to $8 per person per month.

UN chief’s 2018 visit

On a mission in Bangladesh on July 1, 2018, the UN Secretary-General praised the country for keeping its borders open and receiving those in need of international protection.

“In a world where so many borders are closed, [the people and Government of Bangladesh] have opened their borders and received their brothers and sisters coming from Myanmar and from the terrible events there,” he said in Dhaka.

The UN chief also praised the World Bank for its recently announced multi-million-dollar grant for Bangladesh to support both refugees and the communities hosting them.