Thousands of Rohingya Muslims Flee into Bangladesh from Myanmar
A further 20,000 are marooned in no man’s land between the two countries, three UN sources said Thursday, Reuters reported.
On Thursday, Bangladeshi border guards recovered the bodies of 20 Rohingya women and children whose boat capsized as they fled violence in Myanmar, an official said, amid rising pressure on Bangladesh to shelter thousands marooned at its borders.
Around 18,500 Rohingya Muslims, many sick and some with bullet wounds, have managed to slip into Bangladesh since Friday, according to the International Organization for Migration.
They fled following a military crackdown on Rohingya in the north of Myanmar’s Rakhine state.
Myanmar has been under fire by the international community and rights groups for its atrocities against the Rohingya.
Myanmar denies full citizenship to Rohingya Muslims, branding them illegal immigrants from Bangladesh.
The Rohingya have been subjected to summary executions, rapes, and arson attacks by security forces since October 2016, when the government used a deadly militant attack on border guards as a pretext to enforce a military siege in Rakhine state, the poorest region in Myanmar which is home to some 1.1 Rohingya Muslims.
