A delegation from Myanmar, led by Ambassador Aung Kyaw Moe, arrived at the Naval jetty ghat in Inani, Cox’s Bazar district, on Thursday (February 15, 2024), aboard a speedboat at 9:50 am, to repatriate 330 members of the Myanmar security forces and others who had sought refuge in Bangladesh.  The group had crossed into Bangladesh, fleeing clashes between the Myanmar military and armed rebel groups. Read: 330 BGP members, others to be handed over to Myanmar authorities Thursday: BGB  The repatriation, supervised by the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), involves individuals including members of the Myanmar Border Guard Police (BGP). The process was earlier confirmed by BGB's public relations officer, Shariful Islam, who also noted that the transfer involved six buses transporting the individuals from Nhila and Ghumdum points to Inani earlier that day. Home Minister, Asaduzzaman Khan, had previously indicated that the repatriation of these individuals was imminent, amidst ongoing border tensions and skirmishes in the Bandarban's Naikhongchhari area. In light of the conflict, the BGB and Coast Guard have ramped up surveillance efforts to prevent further crossings. This border tension has led to casualties on the Bangladeshi side, including the deaths of a Bangladeshi woman and a Rohingya man due to mortar shell impacts from Myanmar. An unidentified body was also found on February 8 in the Rahmaterbil border area of Ukhiya, Cox’s Bazar, as reported by Md Shamim Hossain, Officer-in-Charge of Ukhiya Police Station. Read: DMP forms 'quick response team' to ease movements of SSC examinees   Additionally, on February 9, BGB personnel detained 23 Rohingyas with 12 firearms and 868 rounds of ammunition as they attempted to cross into Bangladesh. A case was subsequently filed under the Arms Act at Ukhiya police station, with a court ordering a 3-day remand for each individual involved.

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.   2 SSC exam centres along BD-Myanmar border relocated 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. Don’t want to share specific date but Myanmar security forces to go back soon: Hasan Mahmud 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. Unidentified man’s body found along Bangladesh-Myanmar border in Cox’s Bazar

The Bangladesh Consulate in Sittwe, Myanmar will soon be shifted to Yangon on a temporary basis due to the current security situation there. “A verbal instruction has already been given. Process is underway,” a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs told UNB on Sunday (February 11, 2024). Other foreign missions stationed in Sittwe are also moving to Yangon on security grounds. Read more: 327 Myanmar security forces taking shelter in Bangladesh: BGB Foreign Minister Dr Hasan Mahmud on Saturday said the process of sending back the Myanmar security forces who took shelter in Bangladesh is underway following discussions between the two countries. He said it was not just the members of Myanmar's Border Guard Police (BGP) and army who had fled to Bangladesh, there were some civilians too. And over a hundred people have also entered India. "They also took them back (from India). Several members of their families, along with their border forces and army, have also fled from Myanmar to our country. Our Ambassador had a meeting with the Foreign Minister of Myanmar. Myanmar agreed to take them back," said the Foreign Minister. Read more: Myanmar border unrest: Tourist ship services on Teknaf-Saint Martin’s route suspended indefinitely