Rohingya bonfire makes thousands homeless – Crypto News Aktuell in English

DHAKA: More than 12,000 Rohingya Muslim refugees were left homeless by a fire that swept through a camp in Cox’s Bazar in southeast Bangladesh, the United Nations said.

According to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), more than 2,000 shelters and over 90 facilities, including hospitals and learning centers, were destroyed in Sunday’s fire.

More than a million Rohingya refugees live in camps in Cox’s Bazar, most of whom fled military crackdowns in Myanmar in 2017.

Bangladesh is investigating the cause of the fire, said Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Commissioner for Refugee Assistance and Repatriation. “Once we get the report it will be clear whether it is an act of sabotage or not,” he added.

Fires often break out in the overcrowded camp with its makeshift structures. A massive fire in March 2021 killed at least 15 refugees and destroyed over 10,000 homes.

Resident Shafiur Rahman, 24, urged the authorities to provide better facilities. “Our homes were burned in Myanmar. Now we’re going through the same thing here,” he said.

Amnesty International also called on the Bangladesh government to provide safer shelters for the refugees.

“The government should recognize the danger of keeping large communities in unsafe, overcrowded conditions and take steps to provide the Rohingya community with adequate and safe housing,” said Yasasmin Kaviratne, the organization’s South Asia regional activist.

Rising crime, difficult living conditions and bleak prospects of returning to Myanmar are driving more Rohingya refugees to leave Bangladesh by boat for countries like Malaysia and Indonesia, risking their lives in the process. UN data shows that 348 Rohingya are said to have died at sea last year.