Rohingya mass graves found in Myanmar: AP
Scores of Rohingya villagers in Myanmar have been massacred and buried in five mass graves, according to an exclusive investigation by the Associated Press.
The report, run by the news agency yesterday, contains testimonies of two dozen surviving witnesses and relatives of victims, as well as time-stamped mobile phone footage of the aftermath of the attack.
Estimates suggested that 400 members of the persecuted minority were killed by Burmese troops.
In one massacre, a group of men were picking teams for a local football-like game called “chinlone” in the village of Gu Dar Pyin, when soldiers began firing at them, reports Al Jazeera online.
A survivor named Noor Kadir later found six of his friends buried in two mass graves. He said the victims' bodies were only recognisable by the colour of their shorts.
The mass killing is believed to have taken place on August 27 and survivors told the Associated Press that soldiers had tried to cover up evidence of the atrocity.
Video obtained by the agency indicates attempts at using acid to remove the bodies.
The remains contained inside the shallow graves rose to the surface after heavy rainfall and survivors were able to film the evidence.
Phil Robertson of Human Rights Watch said the report “raises the stakes for the international community to demand accountability from Myanmar” and underlined the need for a UN-led arms embargo on the country.
“The AP's report that [soldiers] brought along to Gu Dyar Pin village containers of acid to disfigure the bodies and make identification more difficult is particularly damning because it shows a degree of pre-planning of these atrocities,” Robertson said.
“It's time for EU and the US to get serious about identifying and levelling targeted sanctions against the Burmese military commanders and soldiers responsible for these rights crimes.”
Myanmar has previously admitted responsibility for one mass grave containing 10 bodies in the village of Inn Din.
The killings happened in September last year, but the authorities acknowledged them only after the discovery of the mass grave in December, claiming those who had died were “terrorists”.
Amnesty International described the December discovery as just the “tip of the iceberg”.
Since August 2017, more than 688,000 Rohingyas have crossed into Bangladesh fleeing what the UN describes as “textbook genocide”.
Bangladesh and Myanmar have agreed a deal to send Rohingya refugees back.
JAPANESE ARTIST IN COX'S BAZAR
Japanese artist and UNHCR Goodwill Ambassador Miyavi yesterday arrived in Cox's Bazar where he would meet refugees and see the assistance that the UNHCR has been providing to Bangladesh to address the crisis, reports UNB.
Born in 1981, Takamasa Ishihara, better known by his stage name Miyavi, is a singer-songwriter, guitarist, record producer and actor. He also plans to perform music for the refugee children.
SWISS PRESIDENT TO VISIT REFUGEES
Swiss President Alain Berset will visit Bangladesh on February 4-7. This will be the first official visit by a Swiss president to Bangladesh, reports UNB.
There will be two main focuses of the tour -- solidarity with a country that is severely affected by the crisis in neighbouring Myanmar and the establishment of closer bilateral relations.
Besides holding official talks with President Abdul Hamid and Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, he will visit Kutupalong camp in Cox's Bazar, where Switzerland provides humanitarian aid to Rohingya refugees.