Persecuted Rohingya face dire new crackdown in Myanmar, children among those killed
- Rohingya face new violence in Myanmar, and forced recruitment and attacks by the Arakan Army, worsening their plight
The persecuted and stateless Rohingya minority is caught in a new violent crackdown in Myanmar, with children among those killed, two reports from influential expert groups warned on Tuesday.
Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya fled Myanmar for neighbouring Bangladesh in 2017 during a crackdown by the military that is now the subject of a United Nations genocide court case.
But around 600,000 remain in the country’s western state of Rakhine, where they have found themselves in the middle of an escalating conflict between junta-run Myanmar’s armed forces and the rebel Arakan Army.
The situation has been inflamed further by the Myanmar military’s forced recruitment of Rohingya to battle the rebel group, including reportedly more than 2,000 from Bangladeshi refugee camps.
Watchdog Fortify Rights said its interviews with eyewitnesses established that the Arakan Army had this month launched a drone and mortar attack on Rohingya civilians.
The bombardment killed more than 100 Rohingya men, women and children on the border with Bangladesh, Fortify Rights said.
