A/HRC/39/CRP.2 ARSA claimed its target was the Tatmadaw, rather than civilians or members of other ethnic groups: ARSA, in principle, strictly does not allow any of our members to attack civilians, their places of worship and properties regardless of their religious and ethnic background.2276 1014. ARSA does not have stated religious motivations, but a seemingly secular ideology with a strong Muslim identity.2277 While high-level Myanmar officials imply that ARSA seeks an independent state, homeland or caliphate,2278 the Mission has not seen such statements from ARSA.2279 1015. ARSA has both a military wing and a political wing. 2280 The military wing is organized hierarchically, led by a small group of commanders, known as the Supreme Council, with decision-making powers.2281 1016. The Commander-in-Chief is known as Ata Ullah, although he may also operate under other pseudonyms. Credible sources indicate that he is a Rohingya Muslim born outside Myanmar to a Rohingya refugee family, who spent much of his life in Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. He is reported to have returned to Myanmar at some point between 2012 and 2016. Ata Ullah first gained international recognition as ARSA’s leader after releasing a video following the ARSA attacks of 9 October 2016.2282 Since the opening of the ARSA Twitter handle in 2017, his signature appears on all public statements, denoting him as Commanderin-Chief. Ata Ulla appears to maintain secrecy around his identity, and it is reported that very few ARSA members have met or seen him. 2283 1017. ARSA members at the military leadership level were responsible for clusters of villagers,2284 below which were village-level groups, referred to as “cells”.2285 Individual members had responsibilities at each level, 2286 receiving instructions and communications along the chain through Internet-based messaging applications. Village leaders then communicated those orders to supporters inside the villages. 2287 1018. ARSA members were loosely divided into different roles according to assignments and expertise. These included recruitment, training, and a group of fighters sometimes referred to as the “Tiger Group”.2288 Others were involved in the production of locally made explosives, intelligence-type activities and sentry duty of villages. 2289 ARSA did not have military style uniforms,2290 although there are credible references to some of them wearing black,2291 which is also visible in some of the videos posted online. 2276 2277 2278 2279 2280 2281 2282 2283 2284 2285 2286 2287 2288 2289 2290 2291 ARSA, Press Release, ARSA/PR/27/2018, on 31 January 2018 See also: ARSA, Press Release, ARSA/PR/01/2017 on 10 March 2017. ARSA, Press Release, ARSA/PR/02/2017, 30 May 2017. BM-025; See also, ARSA public statements 1 and 5. For example, on 11 September 2017, the Office of the Commander-in-Chief: “Because they (the Rohingya) don’t have citizenship, and they are not “Nationality” and not a recognized ethnic group, there is no way they could ask for a self-administered zone. That’s why they will remove the governing structure (in Rakhine State) with whatever means possible. They will remove all the ethnic people, everyone except their own kind, in the region. They will make sure the government and other ethnic people cannot re-enter the region.”; Part 6 of the “Talk on Rakhine issue and security outlook” Facebook Post (removed, post on file with the Mission). BM-025; See also, all ARSA Statements. BM-003, BM-025, BM-024. QI-099, BM-025, QM-013. Video available at: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qcCPxEod87o K-159, V-097. QI-099, K-159. BM-025. CI-140, QI-099, QI-100, QI-103, XI-137. LI-122, QI-99, QI-102, BM-003. QI-099, XI-008. CI-137, CI-140, QI-099, QI-100. LI-054, BM-003. V-075. 243