A group of 20 Rohingya, including women and a child, took refuge on the shores of St Martin's Island yesterday(July 25l). After their trawler was forced to land due to rough sea conditions in the Bay of Bengal.

The vessel reached the northern beach of the island around 11am, according to Teknaf Upazila Nirbahi Officer UNO Sheikh Ehsan Uddin. Local representatives informed us about the incident in the morning. The district administration has been alerted, and law enforcement agencies are currently managing the situation, he said.

Foyezul Islam, acting chairman of St Martin’s Union Parishad, confirmed that the group had fled Myanmar due to the intensifying conflict between the military junta and the Arakan Army. They took refuge here because of life-threatening sea conditions. They may be sent back to Myanmar once the weather improves, he added.

The Border Guard Bangladesh BGB arrived shortly after the landing and arranged temporary shelter for the group in a hotel room. Breakfast and lunch were provided by the union parishad. The group remains under BGB custody as of this report.

This incident is the latest in a series of Rohingya displacements triggered by escalating violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine State. The Arakan Army, which initially positioned itself as a regional resistance force against the military junta, has come under increasing scrutiny for alleged abuses against ethnic Rohingya communities. Local and international rights groups have reported that the Arakan Army continues to push Rohingya civilians out of contested territories under its control, sometimes forcibly conscripting young men or using them as human shields in combat zones.

The United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR estimates that nearly 150000 Rohingya have fled Myanmar into Bangladesh over the past 18 months, many escaping targeted violence, forced displacement, and ethnic persecution.

Efforts to contact officials from the Coast Guard and BGB for comment were unsuccessful at the time of filing this report.

The situation reflects the worsening humanitarian crisis across the Myanmar-Bangladesh border, raising urgent concerns for regional stability, border management, and the safety of vulnerable populations.
 

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