Regime recruits Kyaukphyu youths for military intelligence roles

By Admin 01 Jun 2026

DMG Newsroom

1 June 2026, Kyaukphyu

The Myanmar regime is reportedly recruiting youths in urban Kyaukphyu, Arakan State, for its military intelligence wing, known as the Office of the Chief of Military Security Affairs (OCMSA).

According to local residents, the regime is targeting youths over the age of 16 from urban wards and nearby villages, enticing them with promises of becoming civil servants despite having only a fourth-grade education.

“They say just being able to read and write is enough. Some recruit quietly, while others come directly to places where young people gather to persuade them,” a male resident of Kyaukphyu said.

Residents said the regime is offering higher salaries than other government departments and telling recruits they can serve either as intelligence personnel within the department or as freelance informants.

Military intelligence is responsible for monitoring domestic and foreign military affairs as well as security-related matters. The agency operates directly under the military, and its personnel are usually appointed from within the armed forces.

Local residents believe the regime is attempting to use Arakanese youths as informants to gather intelligence from within Arakan State rather than permanently appointing them as official staff members.

“The regime is lacking military intelligence from Arakan State, and that weakness is one reason for its military defeats against the Arakan Army. To overcome this, they are trying to exploit local youths through incentives in order to gather information related to the Arakan Army,” another resident of Kyaukphyu said.

Some observers also view the recruitment campaign as part of the regime’s broader efforts to expand military conscription and recruit additional personnel.

Fighting remains intense between regime forces and the Arakan Army in Kyaukphyu Township. The regime has continued reinforcing the township with naval, air, and ground forces in an effort to prevent it from falling under Arakan Army control.

The Office of the Chief of Military Security Affairs was originally established in 1958 during the caretaker government period. Following the 1962 military coup, the agency became notorious for surveilling, arresting, and interrogating anti-dictatorship activists, politicians, and dissidents.