More than Half a Million Rohingya in Bangladesh Get ID Cards

More than 500,000 Rohingya refugees who fled a brutal crackdown in Myanmar two years ago, have received identification cards, according to a UN agency.

The UNHCR further said in a statement. that an estimated 900,000 Rohingya refugees live in crowded settlements in Cox’s Bazar, according to UNHCR, which is working with the Bangladeshi authorities to complete the operation.

More than 740,000 of those in camps fled from neighbouring Myanmar in the last two years amid State-led violence described as tantamount to ethnic cleansing, by the then UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein.

The accurate data will help agencies in their program planning, particularly for those with specific needs such as women, children and people with disabilities, the statement said.

According to Amnesty International, more than 750,000 Rohingya refugees, mostly women and children, have fled Myanmar and crossed into Bangladesh after Myanmar forces launched a crackdown on the minority Muslim community in August 2017.