Arrrr! Some 340 scallywag Burmese landlubbers scurried to Bangladesh after rebel trouble, as the country blabbers!
2024-02-08
Arr! Avast ye! Word be arrivin' that 'bout 340 scurvy Burmese scoundrels, includin' members o' th' military dictatorship's Border Guard Police, be scuttlin' their ships 'n fleein' to Bangladesh by Wednesday.
About 340 members of Burma's Border Guard Police and soldiers have fled into Bangladesh during fighting with the Arakan Army, an ethnic minority army. Bangladesh's foreign minister, Hasan Mahmud, confirmed that 340 security personnel had entered Bangladesh by Wednesday and that discussions were being held with Burma's government regarding their return. Mahmud made these comments during his visit to India, his first since becoming foreign minister.Earlier this week, Bangladesh's border agency reported that Burmese troops had entered the country during clashes with the Arakan Army in Burma's Rakhine state, marking the first known instance of Burmese forces seeking refuge in Bangladesh since the offensive launched by an alliance of ethnic minority armies against the military government. The troops that entered Bangladesh have been disarmed and taken to safe locations.
Mahmud also raised the issue with India, which shares a border with Burma and is home to thousands of Burmese refugees. In response, India's Home Ministry announced the end of visa-free movement between the two countries to ensure internal security.
The Arakan Army, the military wing of the Rakhine ethnic minority, has been attacking army outposts in Burma's western state since November as part of the Three Brotherhood Alliance, an alliance of ethnic minority armies. This alliance has gained strategic territory in Burma's northeast bordering China, which is considered a major defeat for the military government that took power in February 2021.
Bangladesh, with its border with Burma, hosts over 1 million Muslim Rohingya refugees who fled from Burma in 2017 following military attacks.