Members of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) have pushed back 37 Rohingya refugees, including children, when they tried to enter Bangladeshi territory from Myanmar by crossing the Naf River in Cox’s Bazar.
The 37 Rohingya refugees were sent back to Myanmar early on Sunday (October 13) after they were detained on Saturday night (October 12) at the Keruntoli border point under Sadar union at Teknaf upazila in Cox’s Bazar district.
Lt Col Md Mohiuddin Ahmed, commander of BGB's Teknaf-based 2nd Battalion, confirmed the matter to the media. He said that the incident took place at about 9:30 on Saturday night at the Keruntoli border point. Among the Rohingya people, 19 were children, 11 were women and eight were men.
Mohiuddin Ahmed said the Rohingya refugees crossed the zero point on the Naf River on several
fishing boats. When the boats reached the shore on this side, BGB members, who were on regular patrol, stopped them and sent them back.
He reiterated that BGB was on high alert to prevent any intrusion through the border.
It is known that all of the Rohingya refugees, who were detained and pushed back, hail from Sikdarpara, Parangpuro, and Ukilpara villages in Maungdaw of Myanmar.
Some of the detainees reported that conflicts between the Arakan Army (AA) and the Myanmar military have devastated their homes and businesses.
The Rohingya people described experiencing bombings, mortar shelling, and missile attacks, which have led to destruction, including their houses being burnt. In search of safety, they made their way to the Naf River, where brokers from Myanmar offered to smuggle them into Bangladesh for a significant fee.
Hundreds of Rohingya refugees entered Cox’s Bazar in September as a result of the worsening conflict in Rakhine State in Myanmar. They joined around 50,000 people who are currently waiting to seek refuge in Bangladesh.
Thousands of people in western Myanmar whose lives have been turned upside down since when the Arakha Army (AA), a powerful ethnic armed group formerly known as the Arakan Army, launched attacks against military positions. The attacks opened a new front in a countrywide uprising against the military, which seized power in a 2021 coup.
In February this year, the military began a recruitment drive targeting Rakhine State’s persecuted Muslim Rohingya minority, using methods that included abductions, threats and coercion to bring them into its fight against the AA.
Following these developments, AA forces burned Rohingya villages and killed Rohingya civilians.
