Myanmar's border crisis is spilling over to Bangladesh territory and prompting concerns among Dhaka communities, especially after a fatal incident with stray gunfire.
The incident involved two people in Bangladesh territory who were killed by a stray mortar shell from Myanmar on Monday. Officials also reported that at least five others were injured by bullets the day after.
Residents of the village that is closest to the border pass sleepless nights while listening to a soundtrack of gunfire. Schools in the area have also been forced to shut down and some people have decided to flee to safer areas far from the conflict.
At the same time, hundreds of people have crossed from Myanmar's Rakhine state into Bangladesh seeking refugee, including regime personnel. Bangladesh's Foreign Ministry on Tuesday summoned Myanmar's ambassador, U Aung Kyaw Moe, in protest of the situation.
The ministry said that Bangladesh was urging the Myanmar government to take all needed measures to stop any unacceptable situation that could cause casualties of life and properties in Bangladesh. It added that the local government was accentuating its position not to allow any further infiltration of displaced persons from Rakhine, as per Nikkei Asia.
The conflict in Myanmar has continued to intensify amid widespread resistance to the military regime that took control of the region on Feb. 1, 2021. The Rakhine-based Arakan Army, which is one of many armed ethnic groups in the region, has been clashing with Myanmar Border Guard Police near Bangladesh's Bandarban and Cox's Bazar districts.
There have been similar violent situations near Myanmar's borders with Thailand, India, and China. Dhaka officials expressed concern about a new influx of refugees that the cash-strapped government is not prepared to handle.
Currently, Bangladesh is already hosting roughly 1 million Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar, the majority of whom fled a violent military crackdown in 2017. It was something that a United Nations fact-finding team said had "genocidal intent." This is an allegation that was denied by Myanmar's capital, Naypyitaw.
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Expanding Conflict
Over the last few days, nearly 100 Myanmar border guards, some injured, fled to Bangladesh amid the continuing conflict. Since taking power in 2021, the military junta is facing its biggest challenge yet in trying to contain the bloody rebellion that is backed by a pro-democracy parallel government, according to Reuters.
A spokesman for Border Guard Bangladesh, Shariful Islam, said on Monday that members of the Myanmar Border Guard Police (BGP) entered the territory with their weapons and 15 of them had bullet wounds.
Bangladesh's refugee relief and repatriation commissioner, Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, said that they accommodated the BGP troops in the nearby district of Bandarban before they are to be sent back to Myanmar.
Anisul Huq, Bangladesh's law minister, said that Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina instructed the military and paramilitary border guards to have patience in dealing with the tensions across the border. He was quoted as saying, "Bangladesh is observing the situation closely and steps will be taken."
The Arakan Army is part of an alliance of ethnic minority armies that launched an offensive in October and has been able to gain strategic territory in the region's northeast bordering China, said the Associated Press.
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