Residents claim that the junta is compelling local Muslims to tear down houses in 17 Arakanese villages within Sittwe Township and sell the rubble as firewood in Sittwe, aiming to provoke ethnic animosity and strife. An elder from Sittwe Township remarked, "The junta forces are employing different tactics to incite ethnic hatred and generate conflicts. At present, Muslims are being compelled to tear down houses in 17 Arakanese villages and sell the debris as firewood in Sittwe. They are selling the wood they cannot transport as charcoal.
Religious nationalism has been the political strategy that the military under Min Aung Hlaing (MAL) has used since he took command of the military as its chief in 2011. The cynical military campaign against Rohingya rebels in 2017 in the aftermath of their attack on police stations and border posts, and knowing that the military is currently the ones arming and training the active Rohingya guerillas and fighting along side them makes one wonder how much the military and MAL has been involved with them from the very beginning.