Arakan News Agency
More than 100,000 Rohingya refugees living in muddy camps in Bangladesh are at risk of mudslides when seasonal weather begins in the middle of the year, a UN report said.
More than 900,000 Rohingya people now live in the Cox-Bazar region of Bangladesh after 688,000 of the violence in Myanmar erupted in late August, and aid workers say the camps housing the newcomers are completely inappropriate.
“Maps showing the risks of landslides and floods show that at least 100,000 people are in great danger and that they need to be moved to new areas or within the neighborhoods where they live,” the UN report said.
“The lack of available space remains the main challenge with the overcrowding of the sites, resulting in extremely difficult living conditions. In addition, overcrowding leads to the spread of diseases such as diphtheria, which is becoming more widespread in most locations,” the report added.
“A large proportion of the land is not suitable for people’s stability because of the high risk of floods and landslides, exacerbated by the overcrowding, the severe slope of the hills, and the expected landslides in the next seasonal weather,” the report said.
