Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Fire at Bangladesh Rohingya camp leaves thousands homeless

Fire at Bangladesh Rohingya camp leaves thousands homeless

Thousands of people were left homeless after a fire gutted parts of a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, police said on Sunday.

About 850,000 of the persecuted Muslim minority -- many of whom escaped a 2017 military crackdown in Myanmar that UN investigators concluded was executed with "genocidal intent" -- live in a network of camps in Bangladesh's border district of Cox's Bazar.


"About 1,200 houses were burnt in the fire," said Kamran Hossain, a spokesman for the Armed Police Battalion, which heads security in the camp.

The fire started at Camp 16 and raced through shelters made of bamboo and tarpaulin, leaving more than 5,000 people homeless, he said.

"The fire started at 4:40 pm (1040 GMT) and was brought under control at around 6:30 pm," he told AFP.

Abdur Rashid, 22, said the fire was so big that he ran for safety as his house and furniture were engulfed by the blaze.

"Everything in my house was burnt. My baby and wife were out. There were a lot of things asbestos survey in the house," he said.

"I saved 30,000 taka (350 dollars) from working as a day labourer The money was burnt in the fire.

"I am now under open sky. I lost my dream."

In March last year, 15 people died and about 50,000 were left homeless in Bangladesh after a huge fire destroyed Rohingya homes in the world's biggest refugee settlement.

Mohammad Yasin, 29, bemoaned the lack of fire safety equipment in the camps.

"Fire occurs here frequently. There was no way we could put out the fire. There was no water. My home is burnt. Many documents, which I brought from Myanmar, are also burnt. And it is cold here," he said.

Bangladesh has been praised for taking in refugees who poured across the border from Myanmar, but has had little success finding them permanent homes.

More For You

Streeting hails India’s global role as Labour backs bilateral relations

Wes Streeting addresses the Republic Day reception at the Guildhall in London last Tuesday (28),joined by Sir Lindsay Hoyle and Vikram Doraiswami

Streeting hails India’s global role as Labour backs bilateral relations

WES STREETING spoke of the priority prime minister Sir Keir Starmer and the Labour government attach to relations with India when he addressed a Republic Day reception at the Guildhall in London last Tuesday (28).

But the secretary of state for health and social care won over the large Indian crowd by paying an unexpected tribute to Rishi Sunak.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

Gautam Adani

Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

SRI LANKA’S government started talks with India’s Adani Group to lower the cost of power from two wind power projects the group will build in the island nation’s northern province, the cabinet spokesman said last Tuesday (28).

Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group’s local projects after US authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts. Adani has denied the allegations.

Keep ReadingShow less
Badenoch proposes stricter citizenship rules for all migrants

Kemi Badenoch delivers speech on January 16, 2025 in London, England. (Photo by Dan Kitwood/Getty Images)

Badenoch proposes stricter citizenship rules for all migrants

CONSERVATIVE PARTY on Thursday (6) proposed a clampdown on all migrants by tightening citizenship rules and barring social benefit claimants from residency rights.

Kemi Badenoch, who took over from Rishi Sunak in November last year, outlined her first major policy agenda as Tory leader in a move seen as an attempt to win back the support of Conservative voters drawn to the far-right anti-immigrant Reform party.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pakistan court gives unusual punishment to Youtuber Rajab Butt for owning lion cub

Pakistani zookeeper Mohammad Amir holds the confiscated lion cub at Lahore’s safari zoo last Tuesday (28)

Pakistan court gives unusual punishment to Youtuber Rajab Butt for owning lion cub

A PAKISTANI YouTube star who was gifted a lion cub on his wedding day avoided jail after promising a judge to upload animal rights videos for a year.

Rajab Butt has one of the largest online followings in south Asia, and his week-long nuptials in December were plastered over celebrity gossip websites.

Keep ReadingShow less
Theft and violence in retail shops hit record high in 2024

The Labour government has pledged to address the rise in retail crime through stronger measures to tackle shoplifting and anti-social behaviour

iStock

Theft and violence in retail shops hit record high in 2024

THEFT and violence against retail workers in Britain soared to record levels last year, driven partly by criminal gangs, and are “out of control”, according to a report last Thursday (30).

The British Retail Consortium's annual crime survey found that more than 20 million thefts occurred in the year to August 31, 2024 – an average of 55,000 a day – costing retailers £2.2 billion.

Keep ReadingShow less