An official from the Thandwe police station told Mizzima that no people have been detained following the attacks, despite the fact that witnesses claim to have recognized the perpetrators.

“We are investigating the case, but still cannot confirm. We will reveal the suspects who were involved in the violence when we know,” said the Thandwe police official.

 On Wednesday, the Myanmar Times reported that the violence had escalated despite heightened security and a Section 144 curfew. According to their sources, a further 14 houses along with a bus station and two buses were torched on Tuesday night in similar attacks at around 9:30pm.

Like the Sunday attacks, the perpetrators are thought to have fled from the scene before police arrived. However witnesses say that the gangs were armed and carried knives and batons, moving around the neighborhood on foot and on motorbikes.

A source who spoke to the Myanmar Times said that many people recognized the faces of the attackers as living in the area.

The violence follows the arrest of two men, possibly Muslim, suspected of sexually assaulting a Buddhist Rakhine girl in Thandwe on Sunday.

The blazes that were later lit on Sunday were among Muslim Kamman housing. Witnesses have told Mizzima that the destruction was led by a group who arrived together on the scene in a car, in which they later escaped.

“At first, I heard people gathering in front of the police station. At around 6:30pm, stones were thrown into houses in Ann Daw Kwet Thit” said the local woman, who wished to remain nameless.

“I heard some noises of provocation. A group of people in a car threw chemicals on the house and then lit the fire.”