How Myanmar’s war drives the Rohingya crisis

What the report says

Al Jazeera reports that Myanmar’s civil war has deepened the long-running Rohingya crisis, with the minority community facing renewed displacement and violence as fighting spreads across Rakhine State. The investigation says that since the 2021 coup and the escalation of conflict, more than 150,000 Rohingya have been driven from their homes and many have fled into neighboring countries, especially Bangladesh, where large refugee camps already hold about a million Rohingya who escaped earlier violence.

The report focuses on allegations from Rohingya witnesses that they are being caught between Myanmar’s military and the Arakan Army, the powerful armed group that now controls much of Rakhine. Those accounts include claims of forced recruitment, targeted attacks and killings, while the documentary also says the Arakan Army is linked to trafficking Rohingya refugees, including women and children, out of Myanmar. Al Jazeera says it worked with human rights investigators and Rohingya citizen journalists and used leaked documents, covertly filmed footage and interviews.

According to the broadcast, both the military and the Arakan Army deny responsibility and accuse each other. The military has also alleged abuses by the Arakan Army, while the group has rejected claims of attacks on civilians. The report adds that Bangladesh is seeking to repatriate refugees, but that continuing violence and the activity of Rohingya armed groups complicate those efforts. The broader significance is that the Rohingya remain trapped in a conflict in which past atrocities, present fighting and uncertain repatriation plans continue to leave them without safety or a durable solution.