NEW DELHI: The separatist Arakan Army has gained control over nearly all of Rakhine state in Myanmar, pushing back against junta-led forces. However, it has alleged that jihadi groups are carrying out atrocities along the border with Bangladesh. It also claims that there is a nexus between the junta and some of these groups.
"There are nearly 11 militant groups operating out of Rohingya refugee camps in Bangladesh which include the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO), Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), Arakan Rohingya Army (ARA). Hundreds of people have died due to their atrocities: killings, rapes, kidnappings and other kinds of torture," said a source from Arakan.
The towns most vulnerable and impacted are Maungdaw and Buthidaung.
The RSO is alleged to have partnerships with the Al-Qaeda and Jamaat-e-Islami. According to a report by the Global Arakan Network (GAN), Islamists have used the Muslim population in Maungdaw as human shields and urged them to fight the non-Muslim population (Buddhists and Hindus).
The radical militant groups have allegedly recruited young orphans (some as young as six years of age) from Rohingya camps in Bangladesh and are training them to fight when they turn teenagers, the report suggests.
The Arakan Army alleges that Bangladesh has tolerated and ignored the mushrooming of these groups in its refugee camps.
"Bangladesh’s support – both tacit and overt – for Rohingya armed actors has facilitated the rise of militant groups at the expense of the moderate, non-violent Rohingya leadership," said the source.
Since the political upheaval in Bangladesh, there have been increasing instances of radical groups targeting the local population in the Rakhine region and allegations of the Bangladesh interim government’s assistance to these groups. Rakhine state has a 270 km border with Bangladesh.
"We are aware of the involvement of Bangladesh’s security agencies in the recruitment of members for these radical groups as Dhaka feels that they will help repatriate the over 1 million Rohingya refugees back to Myanmar," the source said.
While some jihadi groups are fighting on their own, others have allegedly joined hands with the junta. The existing political instability in both Myanmar and Bangladesh has made matters worse as the borders have become more porous, leaving the locals gripped with fear.