CaspianReport

Rohingya crisis in Myanmar (2017x33)

: 22, 2017

At least 12 members of Myanmar security forces were killed by Rohingya insurgents in late-August 2017, which prompted the Burmese military to retaliate with excessive force. The ensuing violence triggered the exodus of about 400,000 ethnic Rohingyas. Many of the refugees brought with them testimonies of atrocities and extrajudicial killings. The UN declared that the violence seemed like a textbook example of ethnic cleansing. Meanwhile, the Burmese government denies wrongdoing and emphasises the threat of the Rohingya-based insurgency that operates in Rakhine province. Officials in Myanmar also accused Rohingyas of setting their own villages ablaze and claimed that international aid workers were rendering assistance to the insurgents. In this report, we will separate fact from fiction and examine the crisis in Rakhine State.