Eight Rohingya Refugees Killed in Landslides at Camps in Southern Bangladesh

Eight Rohingya Refugees Killed in Landslides at Camps in Southern Bangladesh
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Eight Rohingya Muslim refugees, including children, were killed and others injured after landslides struck several refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar in southeastern Bangladesh following heavy monsoon rains, local officials said on Monday.

Authorities said the landslides hit four locations inside the camps, burying several temporary shelters under mud and debris while residents were sleeping. A separate hillside collapse in Cox’s Bazar city killed one Bangladeshi citizen and injured two members of his family.

Cox’s Bazar police official Tumba Das said heavy rainfall triggered the landslides that killed eight people, warning that continued rain could lead to further incidents as thousands of refugees live on unstable slopes.

Mohammad Mizanur Rahman, Bangladesh’s official in charge of refugee relief and repatriation, said authorities had begun moving residents from the most dangerous areas to safer locations to prevent more casualties.

Cox’s Bazar hosts more than 1.2 million Rohingya refugees, most of whom fled Myanmar after a military crackdown in Rakhine State in 2017. Many live in temporary shelters made of bamboo and plastic sheets, leaving them highly vulnerable during the annual monsoon season.

The incident comes amid growing concern over a possible new wave of displacement due to renewed fighting in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, which could push more Rohingya refugees toward Bangladesh.