According to the International Crisis Group ( ICG ) and a spokesperson for ARSA , the group was formed in 2013 , following the 2012 Rakhine State riots , under the name '' Harakah al-Yaqin '' ( translated as '' Faith Movement '' in English ) . A former member of ARSA described how he was recruited by the group 's leader , Ataullah abu Ammar Jununi , three years prior to the attacks in October 2016 . Ataullah had approached villagers , asking for five to ten recruits to join his group and telling them that the time had come to " stop the mistreatment of the Rohingya people " . Prior to the October 2016 attacks , ARSA had merely patrolled villages armed with bamboo sticks , making sure that villagers prayed at mosques . According to Rohingya locals and Burmese security officials , the group had again began approaching Rohingya men from various villages for recruitment six months prior to its first attack in October 2016 , this time with the intention of training them across the border in Bangladesh for a future attack in Myanmar
2012 Rakhine State riots
2012 Rakhine State riots
Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army