Arakan News Agency
The United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) has asked Bangladesh to provide shelter for more than 113,000 newly arrived Rohingya refugees, officials said on Monday.
Bangladesh’s Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammed Mizanur Rahman told Anadolu Agency that UNHCR has written to the commission’s office last week to arrange housing for the newly arrived Rohingya.
Rahman stated that the new arrivals are currently staying in makeshift tents, learning centers, and mosques within the camps, as there is no space to construct new shelters.
Officials in the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commission (RRRC) have expressed their deep concern that expanding shelter capacity could complicate future repatriation efforts, potentially encouraging more people to cross the border.
The overall count of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh has recently surpassed 1.3M as escalating armed conflict in Myanmar forces people in Arakan to flee, Anadolu reported.
Local media reports state that newly arrived Rohingya are members of 29,607 families. Last week alone, 1,448 families crossed the border, along with 5,930 people traveling separately. Most are entering Bangladesh from Myanmar’s Arakan State via the Naf River or through mountain passes.
Large numbers of Rohingya fled to Bangladesh in 2017, due to the “genocidal” campaign waged against them by the Myanmar military. Influx resumed after conflict between the Arakan Army (a separatist group) and Myanmar army ravaged the state in November 2023. The conflict has subjected Rohingya to violence, killings, and forced conscription by both sides, while Rohingya in Arakan are still suffering from its effects.
