UN official says not safe yet for Rohingya return to Myanmar

Myanmar and Bangladesh have signed agreements to start repatriations but Bangladesh says more time is needed amid questions over the Rohingya safety and willingness.

January 25, 2018 12:07 pm | Updated 12:09 pm IST - KUTUPALONG (Bangladesh):

In this Jan. 22, 2018, file photo, Rohingya women wait for aid at the Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.

In this Jan. 22, 2018, file photo, Rohingya women wait for aid at the Kutupalong refugee camp outside Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh.

A high-ranking United Nations official says attacks on Rohingya Muslims appear to be continuing in Myanmar and it is not yet safe for the hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees living in Bangladesh to begin returning to their homes.

During a Wednesday visit to the immense Kutupalong refugee camp, Justin Forsyth, the deputy executive director of UNICEF, said that many Rohingya want to return eventually to their villages in Myanmar.

But he also says refugees speaking to relatives inside Myanmar reported continuing violence, making it unsafe for repatriations to begin.

Myanmar and Bangladesh have signed agreements to start repatriations but Bangladesh says more time is needed amid questions over the Rohingya safety and willingness.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.