"A Myanmar military battalion commander and six other soldiers were killed in a mine attack launched by the Arakan Army (AA) in Rakhine State’s Kyauktaw Township on Wednesday, according to AA information officer Khaing Thukha. The AA attacked the military troops using remote-detonated mines around noon on Wednesday near the village of Thayet Tapin. “We intercepted military troops at a bridge over Tha Yee Creek near Thayet Tapin Village around 12 p.m. yesterday,” Khaing Thuka told The Irrawaddy on Thursday. “Seven soldiers, including Light Infantry Battalion 374 commander Lieutenant-Colonel Yan Naung Win, were killed and some were injured,” he said. The bridge is located near the Yangon-Sittwe road. “Yesterday, we heard an explosion beyond the bridge. Nobody dared to go outside after hearing the explosion,” a resident of Thayet Tapin Village told The Irrawaddy. “All the shop owners by the road have closed their shops and stayed in their houses since then. Soldiers are still staying at those shops.” The road was temporarily closed after the incident and was reopened around 2 p.m. on Wednesday, according to local residents. However, Myanmar military Western Command spokesperson Colonel Win Zaw Oo denied there was any mine explosion or that any soldiers were killed near Thayet Tapin Village on Wednesday..."