A powerful ethnic armed group in western Myanmar claimed Friday to have scored a major victory in the war against the ruling military, even as neighboring nations at a meeting in Thailand were discussing efforts to end the conflict peacefully.

A Myanmar ethnic rebel group has captured a military regional command in Rakhine state, it said, in what would be a major blow to the junta. The Arakan Army had "completely captured" the western regional command at Ann on Friday after weeks of fighting,

On Friday, the Arakan Army said it captured the Western Command headquarters in Ann town of Rakhine state after more than two months of fighting