The Myanmar Army, known as Tatmadaw, claims to have killed 13 fighters from the insurgent Arakan Army (AA), during continued violence in Rakhine State. In a rare press conference, Major General Tun Tun Nyi said that the fighting had taken place between January 5 and 16. The fight involved eight clashes and five landmine explosions. “Thirteen enemy bodies and three weapons were seized and some soldiers died and were injured on our side,” Tun Tun Nyi was quoted as saying by Reuters. However, he refused to elaborate on how many Tatmadaw soldiers were killed. The military said that State Counsellor Daw Aung San Suu Kyi had called on the military to “crush” the AA fighters. Ms Yanghee Lee, UN special rapporteur for human rights in Myanmar, has expressed concern about the violence in Rakhine. “I am seriously concerned about the dangerous rhetoric being used by the government,” she said in a statement. “The ethnic Rakhine population must not be demonized and targeted by the military on suspicion of being associated with the AA,” she was quoted as saying by Reuters. Meanwhile, the military also said that fighters from the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) injured six police officers during an attempted ambush. The attack in northern Rakhine State on January 16, heightened fears of renewed fighting in the region.