Recently, a claim has circulated online alleging that Myanmar's Arakan Army has seized control of Bangladesh’s St. Martin’s Island.

Fact-Check

An investigation by the Rumor Scanner team confirms that this claim is false. The assertion lacks credible evidence and appears to have been spread without any reliable sources to back it up.

The claim originated on December 30, 2024, from several Indian X (formerly Twitter) accounts. However, no international media outlets or credible sources have reported any incidents of the Arakan Army invading or seizing St. Martin’s Island or encroaching into Bangladeshi territory.

Further investigation revealed a report published on December 9, 2024, by Myanmar-based media outlet The Irrawaddy. The article, titled “AA Takes Complete Control of Myanmar-Bangladesh Border After Seizing Maungdaw,” stated that on December 8, 2024, the Arakan Army had taken control of Maungdaw town and established dominance over Myanmar's 270-kilometer-long border with Bangladesh. A similar report was referenced in an opinion piece published by The Daily Star on December 13, 2024. However, none of these reports mentioned any activity by the Arakan Army on St. Martin’s Island.

The Arakan Army, a rebel group fighting Myanmar’s junta government for over nine months, has been the subject of multiple rumors. The same X account, Kreaty.in, which spread the false claim about St. Martin’s Island, previously circulated another baseless claim in December 2024, alleging the Arakan Army had seized Teknaf, Bangladesh. That claim was also debunked through a fact-check by Rumor Scanner.

The claim that Myanmar's Arakan Army has seized St. Martin’s Island is entirely false. It has no basis in verified information and appears to be a fabricated narrative propagated through unreliable sources.

Original News Link: https://rumorscanner.com/fact-check/bangladesh-has-not-lost-st-martins-island-to-arakan-army/134694