Myanmar police have clashed with insurgents in the troubled western state of Rakhine, state-run media reports say, as fighting continues between the security forces and an armed group representing the Buddhist Rakhine ethnic group.
The United Nations said about 2500 people had been driven from their homes since early December when clashes broke out with the Arakan Army, one of several groups fighting Myanmar's army that want more autonomy for ethnic minorities.
The Myanmar military last month announced a four-month halt in fighting in the north and northeast of the country in order to kick-start stalled peace talks with the armed groups.
Rakhine, in the west, was excluded from the pause, stoking doubts about the military's willingness to bring an end to all the country's conflicts.
Rakhine was where the military launched a campaign in 2017 that has driven more than 730,000 Rohingya Muslims into bordering Bangladesh.
Recent fighting has involved the Arakan Army, which claims to represent the Rakhine, the Buddhist ethnic group who make up the majority in the state of the same name.
The state-run Global New Light of Myanmar newspaper said one policeman was critically injured when border guard police were attacked by about 30 men carrying "small and heavy arms" on Tuesday near Saytaung, a village in the Buthidaung area.
Khin Thu Kha, a spokesman for the Arakan Army, denied that the group attacked the police, but said the group did clash with government security forces in Saytaung on Tuesday.
