The United League of Arakan has urged Maungdaw residents near the Bangladesh border in Rakhine State to leave the town as its armed wing, the Arakan Army (AA), seeks to seize remaining Myanmar junta strongholds, The Irrawaddy reported.

The organization said on Sunday that the remaining junta bases in Maungdaw Township are encircled. It added that the military has long used the town as a base for operations and has prepared for urban warfare.

It has urged residents to leave areas where regime forces had fortified positions or been deployed.

The AA completely seized adjacent Buthidaung Township in mid-May before prioritizing Maungdaw.

It said it occupied 10 more junta bases in Maungdaw, including three Border Guard Force headquarters and an army base between June 1 and 13.

It claimed that over 200 regime troops, including an army base commander, Colonel Tayzar Htay, were killed.

A military analyst recently told The Irrawaddy that the state capital, Sittwe, will be the AA’s next target after Maungdaw.