Bangladesh summons Myanmar envoy over mortar fire at border

By Md. Kamruzzaman

DHAKA, Bangladesh (AA) - Bangladesh’s Foreign Ministry on Monday summoned Myanmar’s ambassador U Lwin Oo after two unexploded mortar shells from Myanmar reportedly fell inside Bangladesh’s territory.

“We called the (Myanmar) ambassador today (Monday) and verbally protested the incident,” local Somoy TV quoted Bangladesh’s Foreign Secretary Masud Bin Momen as saying.

Amid reports of heavy gunfights inside the Buddhist-majority country for over one week, two unexploded mortar shells from Myanmar fell inside Bangladesh’s Naikhyangchari area of the border district of Bandarban on Sunday afternoon.

In the no-man’s land in this border area, nearly 4,500 Rohingya have been living since Aug. 25, 2017, when they fled a brutal military crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine State.

“Locals and the Rohingya in our area are unable to sleep and perform routine work as they are scared of the heavy sound of gunfire coming from Myanmar,” Toslim Iqbal Chowdhury, a resident and former local government chairman of the Naikhyangchari Union Council, told Anadolu Agency.

He added that the Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) has extended its vigilance across the front line and the locals have been advised to remain alert.

Dil Mohammad, a Rohingya leader living at the refugee camp in the no-man’s land, told Anadolu Agency that such an incident would affect the peaceful repatriation of the Rohingya to their homeland.