Myanmar and Bangladesh signed a deal on Thursday paving the way for the possible repatriation of Rohingya Muslims who have fled violence in Rakhine state, officials said, as global pressure mounts over the refugee crisis. More than 620,000 Rohingya have poured into Bangladesh since August, running from a Myanmar military crackdown that Washington said this week clearly constitutes “ethnic cleansing”. “Myanmar and Bangladesh signed a memorandum of understanding today,” Myint Kyaing, the permanent secretary of Myanmar’s Ministry of Labour, Immigration and Population, confirmed to AFP. Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay also tweeted that an “agreement on repatriation” had been signed, though he could not be reached by phone for further comment. The stateless Rohingya have been the target of communal violence and vicious anti-Muslim sentiment in mainly Buddhist Myanmar for years.

Source: The Guardian November 23, 2017 11:48 UTC