Bangladesh has acknowledged that Rohingya influx is due to ‘corruption’ on the border, but has dismissed the possibility of a new ‘Rohingya influx’ from Rakhine.
Meanwhile, the BBC’s Burmese department reported that the state administration’s military council or government forces there had lost control of the town of Kanpetlet in neighboring Chin State.
The soldiers of the military council were withdrawn on Sunday afternoon, they said.
The group in Myanmar’s Chin state launched the fight on December 22 by announcing the capture of the town of Kanpelet.
After the fall of the western military command in Rakhine on Friday, the rebel group Arakan Army has again claimed that the rebel group Arakan Army is in full control of the city.
In such a situation, an emergency informal meeting was held in Thailand on Thursday to review the situation arising in Myanmar and what to do with the bordering countries. The meeting was attended by Bangladesh Foreign Affairs Adviser Towhid Hossain and Myanmar’s Foreign Minister who is also the country’s Deputy Prime Minister. Representatives from India, China, Laos and Cambodia also attended the meeting.
Myanmar overthrew the civilian government in 2021 and martial law was imposed. Since then, widespread protests have escalated into armed rebellion.
The AA is one of the anti-junta Three Brotherhood Alliance. In October 2023, the coalition launched a massive offensive in Rakhine. Since then, the rebel group has won one victory after another. At least 80,000 Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh in the last few months due to the conflict, Bangladesh’s chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus told a meeting during a recent visit to Cairo.
More Rohingyas are coming in different ways and due to the situation in Rakhine, there are fears from various quarters that Rohingya infiltration may be widespread.
Major (retd) Emdadul Islam, an experienced security analyst on Myanmar, told BBC Bangla that he also feared more Rohingya infiltration in the future.
Foreign Affairs Adviser Towhid Hossain, however, said he did not think there would be another wave in Bangladesh.