Bangladesh signs U.N. deal to help Rohingya refugees on island

 

Image credit Euronews

U.N. officials signed a deal with Bangladesh on Saturday to help provide basic services to thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees who have been moved to camps on a remote island in the Bay of Bengal.

The Bangladeshi government has moved nearly 19,000 Rohingya refugees to Bhasan Char island from border camps despite protests by some refugees and opposition from rights groups, who say the low-lying island is vulnerable to flooding and storms.

Authorities in the densely populated South Asian country eventually want the island to accommodate about 10% of the 1million Rohingya refugees who currently live in ramshackle border camps after fleeing violence in neighbouring Myanmar.

UNHCR, the U.N. refugee agency, said the agreement signed on Saturday allowed for close cooperation with the government on providing services for the island's growing refugee population