Bangladesh: Fire breaks out at Cox's Bazar refugee camp

Cox's Bazar, one of the world's biggest refugee camps, was ravaged by a massive fire on Sunday, the UN and other aid agencies reported.

The camp is home mostly to Muslim Rohingya who have fled Myanmar into neighbouring Bangladesh.

The fire was reported to have broken out in the Balukhali camp in the early afternoon. Fire service official Emdadul Haque said there were no immediate casualties.

The UNHCR in Bangladesh wrote in a tweet that volunteers from the camp were tackling the fire.

Local newspaper Dhaka Tribune reported that four fire services units had also been deployed.

It also said that at least 50 shacks had been burned down.

Over 1 million Rohingya refugees have fled to Bangladesh to escape state oppression that the US has said amounts to genocide.

The number of Rohingya crossing the border shot up in 2017 when the military in Buddhist-majority Myanmar began a violent crackdown on the minority group.

Most Rohingya in Myanmar have been denied citizenship and other rights. Attempts by Bangladesh to send them back have failed as conditions have only worsened since the military took power in Myanmar in 2021.

More to follow...

ab/fb (AP, Reuters)