Arakan News Agency
Bangladesh’s interim government has announced plans to take strict measures against armed groups operating in and around the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, as part of a renewed effort to enhance security and respond to growing threats.
The announcement came during a visit by the Advisor on Home Affairs, Jahangir Alam Chowdhury, to the Balukhali refugee camp in the Ukhiya area. He stated that the authorities will begin installing barbed wire fences around the camps to tighten security control.
This move coincides with the formation of a new political body to represent the Rohingya, amid rising regional and international concerns over cross-border extremism and escalating violence in Myanmar’s Arakan State.
The visiting delegation also included Farooq Azam from the Ministry of Disaster Management and Relief, and retired General Abdul Hafiz, a defense advisor. They were briefed on the deteriorating conditions in the camps, which host over 1.4 million Rohingya refugees.
On Tuesday, Retired Lieutenant General Jahangir Alam Chowdhury from the Ministry of Home Affairs, along with Disaster Management and Relief Advisor Farooq Azam, toured the Rohingya refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar on an official visit to assess humanitarian conditions and ongoing support efforts.
Bangladesh is currently hosting over one million Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazar, home to what the United Nations classifies as the world’s largest refugee settlement. The majority fled Myanmar in 2017 following a brutal campaign of ethnic cleansing by the Myanmar military. Their plight has worsened further since renewed fighting broke out between the Myanmar military and the Arakan Army in November 2023, resulting in new waves of violence, displacement, and forced recruitment.
