TEKNAF, Bangladesh: Bangladesh police said they had shot dead two Rohingya refugees during a gunfight in a refugee camp on Saturday after the pair were accused of killing a ruling party official.
Nearly a million Rohingya live in squalid camps in southeast Bangladesh, 740,000 of whom fled a 2017 military offensive against the Muslim minority in Myanmar.
Rights activists, who asked not to be named, said they believe the two Rohingya men were killed by police in what appeared to be a staged encounter.
The incident comes two days after a second failed attempt to repatriate the refugees, which saw not a single Rohingya turn up to return across the border to conflict-scarred Rakhine state.
“Both men died as they were rushed to a hospital,” local police inspector Rasel Ahmad told AFP, adding that the incident took place in Jadimura refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar district.
Ahmad said the two Rohingya were shot and critically injured during a manhunt for suspects after a youth wing official of the ruling Awami League party was killed, allegedly by armed refugees.
Awami League official Omar Faruk was shot in the head on Thursday, at a settlement near the border town of Teknaf, Ahmad said.
His murder had sparked anger among the local population, with hundreds of furious people blocking a key highway leading to the camps for hours, burning tires and vandalising shops visited by refugees.
Ahmad said the two men killed on Saturday had been identified as key suspects in Faruk’s killing and added that they had been shot while the officers were ambushed by the suspected criminals.
“It was wrong of the refugees to agitate the locals. We want justice in the quickest possible time,” said Abdul Matin, a friend of the deceased politician.
Refugees said the recent bloodshed has created an atmosphere of fear in the camps, where security has been tightened.
The killings came as the Rohingya are set to commemorate the second anniversary of their mass influx into Bangladesh from Rakhine after the brutal military campaign.
UN investigators have said the 2017 violence warrants the prosecution of top Myanmar generals for “genocide.”
On Thursday Bangladesh’s second attempt to start repatriation of Rohingya back to Myanmar faltered after the refugees said they won’t return unless their security is ensured and they were granted citizenship in their homeland.
Bangladesh police shoot dead two Rohingya in refugee camp
Bangladesh police shoot dead two Rohingya in refugee camp
- “Both men died as they were rushed to a hospital,” local police inspector Rasel Ahmad told AFP, adding that the incident took place in Jadimura refugee camp in Cox’s Bazar district
- Nearly a million Rohingya live in squalid camps in southeast Bangladesh, 740,000 of whom fled a 2017 military offensive against the Muslim minority in Myanmar
Australia’s US ambassador Rudd to step down early
SYDNEY: Australia’s ambassador to the United States Kevin Rudd is stepping down, Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on Tuesday, a year earlier than expected following criticism from US President Donald Trump.
Rudd, a former Australian prime minister, is returning to head the Asia Society think tank and will finish his posting in March, Albanese told a news conference.
“Australia and the United States are the closest of friends and allies, and this will never change,” he said. “We will continue to take forward the important work that Kevin has done, some of it is, of course, ongoing work.”
Rudd had secured continued support for the AUKUS nuclear submarine program, Australia’s largest defense project, from the Trump administration, and negotiated a critical minerals agreement with the US, Albanese said.
Rudd made several comments criticizing Trump before he became ambassador, including calling him “the most destructive president in history.” He later deleted that comment from social media when he was appointed ambassador.
When asked during an October event at the White House during a visit by Albanese about Rudd’s past comments, Trump gestured to the ambassador across the table and said “I don’t like you either, and I probably never will.”
Following criticism from Australia’s opposition, who called for him to be sacked over his remarks about Trump, Albanese said in October that Rudd would serve out his four-year term.
Albanese said the decision to leave the role early was “entirely Kevin Rudd’s decision.” An announcement of Rudd’s replacement would be made at a later date, he said.
A White House official told Reuters when asked about Rudd’s departure: “Ambassador Rudd worked well with President Trump and the administration. We wish him well.”
Rudd wrote on social media platform X that he would remain in the United States, working on “the future of US-China relations, which I have always believed to be the core question for the future stability of our region and the world.”
He had hosted a dinner for Pentagon Under Secretary of Defense Elbridge Colby, who conducted a review of AUKUS last year, two days ago, Rudd wrote in an earlier post.
