Shafiul Alam, a resident of Ghumdhum’s Jalpaitoli, a once quiet village in the border district of Bandarban, is now counting his days wracked by a complex cocktail of human emotions. His life took an unexpected turn on February 5, as his mother lost her life when a stray mortar shell fired from Myanmar landed in their under-construction house, which also left his two children with shrapnel wounds on their feet, and took the life of a Rohingya construction worker.

He is not even in a situation to grieve properly as he has to think about how to treat his children with little to no help. The children only survived as they were inside their home at the time, while their grandmother was serving lunch to the construction worker.  

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Bandarban's Deputy Commissioner Shah Mojahid Uddin and Superintendent of Police Saikat Shahin later paid a visit to the family. A mere donation of Tk 20,000 was offered as immediate assistance, but the bereaved family expressed dissatisfaction with the government's support process. 

Their plea is clear: they seek international intervention to ensure justice and an end to their current situation of fearing for their lives every moment of the day.

Shafiul is not alone, the repercussions of Myanmar's civil war extend beyond Shafiul's family. Thousands of bordering residents of the country are now passing each day fearing for their lives.

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In Tumbru and surrounding areas, at least 12 people have been shot and injured, their suffering further exacerbated by the lack of medical treatment and government support.

The victims are now only pleading for assistance, to save their lives which reveals a bitter reality of the toll that geopolitical strife takes on ordinary lives.

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