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Repatriation of 330 Myanmar security forces who entered Bangladesh to escape fighting begins

 Published: 13:11, 15 February 2024

Repatriation of 330 Myanmar security forces who entered Bangladesh to escape fighting begins

Bangladesh has successfully repatriated 330 security forces from Myanmar, including members of its army, and Border Guard Police (BGP), who entered Bangladesh amid internal conflict at their border.

The repatriation process unfolded as the group, consisting of 302 BGP members, four family members of BGP personnel, two army members, 18 immigration officials, and four civilians, was transported from Cox's Bazar's Inani Jetty to a Myanmar Navy ship stationed at the border. The transfer was conducted via a Bangladeshi ship named Karnaphuli around 11 am on February 15.
Initially, the individuals were brought to the naval jetty of Inani from the Ghumdhum border of Naikhongchhari upazila of Bandarban and Teknaf upazila of Cox's Bazar, as confirmed by Shariful Islam, the public relations officer of the Border Guard Police (BGP).
Earlier in the day, a five-member delegation from the Myanmar BGP, led by Police Colonel Myo Thura Naung, arrived at the Bangladesh border on a Bangladesh Coast Guard ship from the Myanmar Navy ship.
The repatriation event saw the presence of key figures such as Myanmar Ambassador to Bangladesh U Aung Kyaw Moe, Md Barikul Islam (Director of Myanmar Affairs at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs), Rashed Hossain Chowdhury (Deputy Secretary of Public Security Division at the Ministry of Home Affairs), and Major General Mohammad Ashrafuzzaman Siddiqui (Director General of BGB), alongside other officials.
Among the attendees was a delegation of Myanmar Border Guard Police, emphasizing the collaborative effort between the two nations to address the situation.
Currently, Cox's Bazar shelters 1.25 million Rohingyas in 33 camps in Ukhiya and Teknaf. Since the persecution by the Myanmar army in Rakhine in August 2017, 800,000 Rohingyas have been displaced. Despite the passage of six years since the influx, the return of a single Rohingya to Myanmar remains uncertain.

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