Myanmar fighting in early February spilled across the border into Bangladesh
\nDHAKA
\nBangladesh is refusing to accept more Rohingya fleeing Myanmar, with authorities saying on Wednesday that the country is already overburdened in supporting more than 1.2 million refugees.
\nThe Rohingya have sought refuge in Bangladesh over decades after escaping death and persecution in Myanmar, especially during a military crackdown in 2017.
\nThe developing country spends an estimated $1.2 billion annually to support the refugees, as international aid for the oppressed stateless minority has fallen since 2020.
\nMost of the Rohingya refugees live in squalid camps in Cox\u2019s Bazar district, a coastal region in eastern Bangladesh.
\n\u201cWe are already overburdened with more than 1 million Rohingya,\u201d Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh\u2019s refugee relief and repatriation commissioner in Cox\u2019s Bazar, told Arab News.
\n\u201cThe people of Bangladesh certainly will not welcome any more Rohingya here. Hospitality in the host community has turned into hostility. In this context, there is nothing much we can do for the newly displaced (Rohingya from Myanmar).\u201d
\nRahman\u2019s statement follows comments from other Bangladeshi officials, including Road Transport and Bridges Minister Obaidul Quader, who told reporters earlier this month that Bangladesh \u201cwill not allow any more Rohingya to enter the country.\u201d
\nHundreds of people from Myanmar, including some Rohingya, have gathered at various points along Bangladesh\u2019s border in recent weeks to seek shelter as the junta battles a strong resistance offensive.
\nHundreds of Myanmarese border troops and police, some with bullet wounds, also sought refuge in Bangladesh during intense periods of fighting in early February.
\n\u201cIt can\u2019t be said that the overall law and order situation is very good at the moment as almost every day there are incidents of murders \u2026 moreover, there have been new added tensions due to the unrest in the border areas,\u201d Rahman said.
\nThe Rohingya, which the UN has described as \u201cone of the world\u2019s most persecuted minorities,\u201d have faced decades of discrimination and repression in Myanmar, where they are not recognized as an indigenous ethnic group and are denied the right to claim citizenship.
\nThousands of Rohingya refugees embarked on deadly sea journeys from Bangladesh \u2014 and to a lesser extent from Myanmar \u2014 in 2023. Last year also saw the highest figure in nine years \u2014 569 \u2014 of the number of Rohingya refugees who died or went missing during dangerous crossings.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Myanmar fighting in early February spilled across the border into Bangladesh DHAKA Bangladesh is refusing to accept more Rohingya fleeing Myanmar, with authorities saying on Wednesday that the country is already overburdened in supporting more than 1.2 million refugees. The Rohingya have sought refuge in Bangladesh over decades after escaping death and persecution in Myanmar, […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":388643,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":{"0":"post-388629","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world"},"yoast_head":"\n