The Rohingyas are a Muslim minority from Rakhine state in Myanmar, often described as the world's most persecuted people. In 2017 Myanmar's army launched attacks that sparked an exodus to Bangladesh, where refugee camps near Cox's Bazar now house more than 1m people. Since the start of 2024, more than 150,000 additional Rohingyas have fled fighting between Myanmar's junta and the Arakan Army, which now controls most of Rakhine.
About 40% of children in the Cox's Bazar camps are malnourished; some 25% of women suffer from anaemia. Health clinics and schools are shutting down as funding dries up. Bangladesh bans the construction of permanent structures in the camps, forbids Rohingyas from working, and prohibits dwellings sturdier than bamboo and tarp—a policy intended to encourage return to Myanmar that has instead made the camps vulnerable to fire and landslides.
The UN says supporting the Rohingyas costs around $934m a year. America has long been the biggest provider, giving around $300m in 2024, but the Trump administration slashed aid during the dismantling of USAID.
October marks the start of what people smugglers call "sailing season" in the Andaman Sea, after the south-west monsoon dies down. For 15,000 Malaysian ringgit ($3,600) per person, criminal networks promise safe passage by sea from the borderlands between Bangladesh and Myanmar to Malaysia. The week-long journey is perilous: some boats sink before reaching shore. Few migrants can pay upfront; those who reach Malaysia often work for years to pay off debts. They also risk arrest and indefinite detention by Malaysian immigration authorities. In May 2025 more than 400 people died after a boat capsized in the Bay of Bengal.
Armed Rohingya groups, including the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, operate from the refugee camps and have long been accused of running kidnapping and extortion rackets. They have launched raids back into Myanmar to attack the Arakan Army. More violence is likely to worsen conditions in Rakhine and force greater numbers to flee.
The Trump administration shut down a refugee programme that had allowed 16,000 Rohingyas to be resettled in America since 2022. The UN said it had received "credible" reports that an Indian naval vessel deporting Rohingyas from Delhi had dumped refugees into waters near a Myanmar island and made them swim to shore.
On September 30th 2025 the UN General Assembly held its first "high-level" conference on the Rohingyas.
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