Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

Rohingya mark Eid, one year after Myanmar crisis began

Nearly one million Rohingya Muslims marked Eid al-Adha on Wednesday (22) in the world's largest refugee camp, almost a year to the day since a brutal military crackdown drove the persecuted minority from Myanmar in huge numbers.

Prayers were offered in makeshift mosques across southern Bangladesh to celebrate the Islamic festival of sacrifice as cows were slaughtered in muddy fields across the sprawling camps.


In Kutupalong, a gigantic hill settlement crammed with hundreds of thousands of refugees, a muezzin called the faithful to pray as children played on a wooden carousel and ran about in dirt alleyways in new clothes for the special day.

For many refugees, this Eid al-Adha is the first since their violent expulsion from western Myanmar a year ago in a campaign of orchestrated violence likened by US and UN officials to ethnic cleansing.

Myanmar's military, backed by armed Buddhist militias, began sweeping through Rohingya villages in August 2017 just days before Eid celebrations got underway.

Sayed Hussain spent last year's Eid hiding in the hills of Rakhine State after fleeing an attack on his village.

"We couldn't sacrifice cows there. We didn't have anything to eat. In Bangladesh... we can slaughter cows. Praise and thanks be to Allah," the 19-year-old said.

Mohammad Jasim, a 16-year-old refugee born and raised in Kutupalong camp, was grateful his relatives in Myanmar had escaped the violence last year to join his family in Bangladesh.

"This year's Eid is much better than previous years. All my relatives are here, so we're having a good time."

- Sombre celebrations -

Muslims traditionally sacrifice animals for the three-day Eid al-Adha feast, a tribute to the prophet Abraham slaughtering a lamb after God spared Ishmael, his son.

Those able to make the sacrifice known as qurbani will consume some of the meat and give the rest to the poor unable to buy food.

In Cox's Bazar near the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, where squalid camps host generations of Rohingya refugees expelled from western Myanmar, there is much need, and little to go around.

Cows, goats and sheep flooded local markets catering to the displaced Muslims in the lead up to Eid.

Some better-off families pooled whatever cash they could muster to make the Islamic sacrifice, buying shares in a cow or goat.

But for most refugees, such luxuries are wildly beyond their means.

Barred from legally working, and surviving hand to mouth on charity, this Eid has for many been overshadowed by the misery in Bangladesh.

The sight of animals being fattened for slaughter taunted Mohammad Amin, a teenager who remembered the home-cooked meat delicacies and special gifts reserved for the holiest Islamic festivity back home.

"But here, we don't have any money to slaughter cows or buy new clothes," the downcast 15-year-old said at Jamtoli camp, a new settlement for recently arrived refugees.

The influx of refugees delivered a bumper year for Bangladeshi livestock trader Aktar Hussain and others like him, who counted wads of cash at a busy cattle market market adjacent to the camps.

"This has been my best year yet," he said, as prospective Rohingya buyers examined a sturdy brown cow in a muddy clearing.

"Last year, I sold 15 cows at Eid. This year, I've already sold 50."

The festival differs from Eid al-Fitr, the other major festival in the Islamic calendar, which was celebrated in June in Muslim-majority Bangladesh after the fasting month of Ramadan.

More For You

Man found guilty of rape and murder of Irish backpacker in India

McLaughlin, 28, from County Donegal, was found dead in a field in Goa in March 2017. (Photo credit: Twitter)

Man found guilty of rape and murder of Irish backpacker in India

A COURT in India has found Vikat Bhagat guilty of the rape and murder of Irish backpacker Danielle McLaughlin.

McLaughlin, 28, from County Donegal, was found dead in a field in Goa in March 2017.

Keep ReadingShow less
Alderman Alastair King

King, who serves as the global ambassador for the City of London, will be in Mumbai to discuss trade and investment under his mayoral theme, 'Growth Unleashed.'

Lord Mayor of London to visit India for trade talks

THE LORD MAYOR of London, Alderman Alastair King, is set to visit India for a week starting Saturday, aiming to promote free trade and capital flows between the two countries.

King, who serves as the global ambassador for the City of London, will be in Mumbai to discuss trade and investment under his mayoral theme, “Growth Unleashed.”

Keep ReadingShow less
trump-modi-washington-getty

The meeting came hours after Trump criticised India’s business environment and announced plans for reciprocal tariffs on countries that impose duties on US imports. (Photo: Getty Images)

Modi and Trump agree to resolve trade disputes, discuss tariff concerns

INDIA and the US have agreed to begin negotiations aimed at resolving trade and tariff disputes, following talks between Indian prime minister Narendra Modi and US president Donald Trump in Washington.

India has committed to increasing purchases of US oil, gas, and defence equipment, while both sides pledged to address trade barriers.

Keep ReadingShow less
Pablo-Escobar-merchandise-Getty

Escobar, killed by security forces in 1993, remains a figure of global interest, with his image appearing on souvenirs like T-shirts, mugs, and keychains. (Photo: Getty Images)

Colombia considers ban on Pablo Escobar merchandise

COLOMBIA’s Congress is considering a bill that would ban the sale of merchandise featuring drug lord Pablo Escobar and other convicted criminals.

The proposed law aims to curb the glorification of Escobar, who was responsible for thousands of deaths during his time leading the Medellín cartel, reported BBC.

Keep ReadingShow less
Assisted dying bill: Judge approval scrapped for expert panel safeguard

Polls show most Britons back assisted dying, with supporters calling for the law to reflect public opinion.

Assisted dying bill: Judge approval scrapped for expert panel safeguard

Eastern Eye

THE proposed new assisted dying law for terminally ill people will be amended to remove the requirement that a high court judge sign off on each case, Labour MP Kim Leadbeater said on Tuesday (11).

Opponents of assisted dying said the change would weaken the safeguards around protecting vulnerable people from being coerced or pressured into taking their own lives.

Keep ReadingShow less