[🇧🇩] Insurgencies in Myanmar. Implications for Bangladesh

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Four bodies recovered after Rohingya boat capsizes off Teknaf coast, several still missing

A Rohingya child and three women have been found dead after a boat capsized while trying to enter Bangladesh through the Teknaf coast, according to the local authorities. Several people, including a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) member, are still missing. A total of 25 people have been rescued by

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

Four bodies recovered after Rohingya boat capsizes off Teknaf coast, several still missing
bdnews24.com
Published :
Mar 22, 2025 23:57
Updated :
Mar 22, 2025 23:57

A Rohingya child and three women have been found dead after a boat capsized while trying to enter Bangladesh through the Teknaf coast, according to the local authorities.

Several people, including a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) member, are still missing.

A total of 25 people have been rescued by Bangladesh's border security forces.

BGB spokesperson Shariful Islam told bdnews24.com that the boat was heading towards Bangladesh via sea route around 2:30am on Friday.

"Near Shah Porir Dwip, the boat began to sink after its hull cracked. Hearing the cries of the passengers, a nearby BGB patrol team rushed to the scene.

“They rescued 25 people from the boat. During the operation, one BGB member went missing."

The spokesperson added that the missing BGB member's name is Billal Hasan, and he is serving as a sepoy.​

 

[Saif]

UN General Assembly adopts resolution on Rohingya crisis

The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on the scope, modalities, format, and organisation of the high-level conference on the situation of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar under the sponsorship of Malaysia and Finland on Tuesday.

en.prothomalo.com

UN General Assembly adopts resolution on Rohingya crisis
UNB
Dhaka
Published: 26 Mar 2025, 21: 34

Rohingya refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state wait for aid at Kutupalong refugee camp in the Bangaldeshi town of Teknaf on 5 September, 2017. File photo

The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution on the scope, modalities, format, and organisation of the high-level conference on the situation of Rohingya Muslims and other minorities in Myanmar under the sponsorship of Malaysia and Finland on Tuesday.

The Permanent Representative of Bangladesh, Ambassador Md Salahuddin Noman Choudhury, made an intervention during the open debate session and proposed a vote on this resolution, as Russia had proposed several amendments that Bangladesh did not accept.

The President of the General Assembly convened the vote, and the resolution was adopted with 141 votes in favour, according to a message received today.

There was no vote against the resolution. However, 10 countries abstained from voting.

The adoption of this resolution is a significant landmark in resolving the Rohingya issue in the future, as it comes at a time when Dhaka is planning to organise a special summit on the Rohingya crisis in New York in September.​

 

[Saif]

US to give $73 million to aid Rohingya refugees: state dept

'This food and nutrition support through @WFP will provide critically needed food and nutrition assistance for more than one million people,' US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce says in a post on X

www.thedailystar.net

US to give $73 million to aid Rohingya refugees: state dept

A view of the Rohingya refugee camp with mountains of Myanmar in the background is pictured in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, March 16, 2025. Photo: Reuters/Mohammad Ponir Hossain

The Trump administration said on Thursday it will provide $73 million in new financial aid to Rohingya refugees through the UN World Food Programme, amid concerns that aid cuts could deepen the crisis for the world's largest stateless population.

"This food and nutrition support through @WFP will provide critically needed food and nutrition assistance for more than one million people," US State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce said in a post on X. "It is important that our international partners engage with sharing the burden with life-saving assistance such as this."

The infusion comes as US President Donald Trump and his administration have made sweeping cuts to foreign assistance as part of his "America First" agenda and wider efforts to drastically cut federal spending and dismantle parts of the US government.

Two United Nations agencies had warned that a funding deficit would curb rations for the Rohingya in Bangladesh who have fled violence in neighboring Myanmar for the past eight years. Refugees have worried that cuts would worsen hunger, curtail critical healthcare and fuel crime.

Washington had been the largest provider of aid to the Rohingya refugees, contributing nearly $2.4 billion since 2017, according to the State Department. But the recent freeze on funds after Trump took office in January has forced at least five hospitals to reduce services.

Trump and billionaire ally Elon Musk have moved to shutter USAID, the main US foreign aid agency, and merge its remnants into the State Department, fired hundreds of staff and contractors and terminated billions of dollars in services on which tens of millions of people around the world depend.

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio in February granted a waiver for all life-saving assistance and reasonable administrative costs as necessary to deliver such aid.

The Trump administration official overseeing the dismantling of USAID had proposed phasing out help for the Rohingya, Reuters reported earlier this month.​

 

[Saif]

WFP reverses decision to cut food aid for Rohingyas in Bangladesh

The World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations has reversed its decision to reduce food aid for Rohingyas residing in Bangladesh's refugee camps, following concerns over the impact of the cut. In the latest development, the residents of various camps along the coast of Cox's Bazar will now r

thefinancialexpress.com.bd

WFP reverses decision to cut food aid for Rohingyas in Bangladesh
FE ONLINE DESK
Published :
Mar 27, 2025 22:49
Updated :
Mar 27, 2025 22:49

The World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations has reversed its decision to reduce food aid for Rohingyas residing in Bangladesh's refugee camps, following concerns over the impact of the cut.

In the latest development, the residents of various camps along the coast of Cox's Bazar will now receive a monthly food allocation of $12 per person, down from the previous $12.50, UNB reports.

Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, the Refugee, Relief, and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC), said, "WFP has informed us of this decision in a letter, which will come into effect from April 1."

He added that Rohingyas living in Bhasan Char would receive $13 per person, one dollar more than those in Cox's Bazar.

This change comes after WFP had previously communicated its plans to reduce food aid for Rohingyas in Bangladesh. On March 5, the Refugee Commission of Bangladesh received a letter from WFP saying that due to a funding crisis, it would cut the monthly food allocation for Rohingyas from $12.50 to $6 per person starting in April.

The letter from WFP raised concerns about the adequacy of food provisions for the refugees.

Then on March 14, UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres visited the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh.

During his visit, he was presented with details of what the Rohingyas would be receiving in terms of food for $6, which raised alarm over the insufficient amount.​

 

[Saif]

Professor Yunus calls on Asian leaders to support Rohingya return

Bangladesh interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Thursday called upon Asian leaders to offer their support for ensuring the repatriation of Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh to their homeland, Myanmar.

www.newagebd.net

Professor Yunus calls on Asian leaders to support Rohingya return
Staff Correspondent 27 March, 2025, 16:38

Chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus.

Bangladesh interim government chief adviser Professor Muhammad Yunus on Thursday called upon Asian leaders to offer their support for ensuring the repatriation of Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh to their homeland, Myanmar.

While addressing the Boao Forum Annual Conference in Hainan province of China, he said that the protracted crisis in Myanmar threatened regional stability, according to his speech shared by the chief adviser’s press wing.

‘While global efforts are drastically shrinking but continuing, Asian leaders must come together to ensure their [Rohingyas sheltered in Bangladesh] safe and dignified repatriation to their home country, Myanmar,’ said Yunus, who reached China on Wednesday on a four-day bilateral visit to the country.

Bangladesh has been hosting over 1.2 million forcibly displaced Rohingyas from Myanmar for more than seven years, he said.

‘We continue to bear significant social, economic, and environmental costs. The UN secretary-general has recently visited the Rohingya camps to express solidarity,’ he said.

None of the Mynanmar nationals sheltered in Cox’s Bazar camps in Bangladesh could be returned to Myanmar despite efforts since the large-scale exodus in 2017.

The chief adviser said that in the changing world, the destinies of Asian countries were intertwined and so they must chart a clear road map for a shared future and shared prosperity.

‘We must chart a clear road map for a shared future and shared prosperity. At this forum, Asia must step up and strengthen cooperation in four key areas,’ Yunus said, adding that first, for financial cooperation, Asia must create a sustainable financing mechanism.

He said that the forum was taking place at a critical juncture with geopolitical tensions rising amid growing humanitarian crises.

‘Political will for development cooperation is weakening. The world faces an alarming shortfall in collective action,’ Yunus observed, adding that Asia, home to 60 per cent of the global population and 55 per cent of the global GDP, was at the centre of these changes.

He said that in 2007, he had attended the Boao Forum for Asia to share insights on microcredit. ‘Today, I stand before you in a different capacity, representing a Bangladesh that underwent a historic transformation in July-August past year. The world witnessed people united against oppression and corruption.’

Zhang Jun, secretary general of Boao Forum for Asia, Ban Ki-moon, former secretary-general of the United Nations and current chairman of the Boao Forum for Asia, attended the event where Ding Xuexiang, executive vice-premiere of the state council of the People’s Republic of China, delivered the keynote speech in the presence of entrepreneurs and business representatives, among others.

Ban Ki-moon met Yunus on the sidelines of the forum in Hainan.​

 

[Saif]

Man loses leg as landmine explodes on Myanmar side of border

A Bangladeshi man suffered serious injuries in a mine blast in the Myanmar side of the Bangladesh border along Naikhongchhari upazila of Bandarban today

www.thedailystar.net

Man loses leg as landmine explodes on Myanmar side of border

A Bangladeshi man suffered serious injuries in a mine blast in the Myanmar side of the Bangladesh border along Naikhongchhari upazila of Bandarban today.

The injured, Mohammad Salam, 45, is currently receiving treatment at the Naikhongchhari Sadar Hospital, said Md Masrurul Haque, officer-in-charge (OC) of Naikhongchhari Police Station.

His left leg was blown off in the explosion, said the police official.

The injured man had illegally entered Myanmar to collect fire wood when he fell victim to the explosion, the OC added.

Locals said the incident occurred around this noon in Chakdhala border of Naikhongchhari Sadar Union, approximately 200m inside Myanmar, beyond Border Pillar 44 along the border.

Earlier, on the evening of March 26, another youth, Mohammad Babu, lost his left leg in a landmine explosion 300 metres inside Myanmar.​