Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh (Reuters) – Thousands were left homeless after a massive fire broke out in overcrowded Rohingya Muslim refugee camps in southern Bangladesh on Sunday, fire officials and the United Nations said.
No immediate casualties were reported at Balukhali camp in Cox’s Bazar district, said his Emdadul Haque of the fire department. His UNHCR in Bangladesh tweeted that Rohingya refugee volunteers responded to the fires with the support of his UNHCR and its partners.
No further details were provided. Over a million Rohingya refugees have fled Myanmar to Bangladesh over the decades, including some 740,000 who crossed the border since August 2017 as the Myanmar military began cracking down.
The situation in Myanmar has deteriorated since the military takeover in 2021, and attempts to repatriate refugees have failed.
Last year, US officials said the crackdown on the Rohingya in Myanmar amounted to genocide after confirming reports of large-scale atrocities against civilians by the military in a systematic campaign against ethnic minorities.
Rohingya Muslims face widespread discrimination in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, with most being denied citizenship and many other rights.
