Yet another mass grave containing bodies of 17 more Hindus has been discovered in Myanmar’s conflict-torn northern Rakhine state.
With that, Myanmar officials said have discovered at least 45 slain Hindus in three mass graves; the government blames Muslim insurgents for the killings.
Two of the graves were found on Sunday and contained the bodies of 20 females and eight males. The government’s Information
Committee said on its Facebook page that all eight males were boys, including six who were under 10 years old.
It said another mass grave was discovered 200 meters (200 yards) away on Monday. The police blame the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army insurgent group, or ARSA. Security forces say the bodies are among about 100 Hindus missing since ARSA attacked at least 30 police outposts on August 25.
Also Read: Mass grave of 28 Hindus killed by Rohingya militants found: Myanmar Army
There was no immediate way to independently verify the government’s assertions. A government crackdown that followed the attacks left more than 200 Rohingya Muslim villages burned and sent at least 420,000 Rohingya fleeing into Bangladesh. The government has said most of the hundreds of people who were killed were insurgents. With the government blocking access to the conflict zone, it is difficult to verify the maelstrom of accusations.
Hindu villagers from the area had told AFP last week that Rohingya militants had stormed their communities on August 25, killing many and kidnapping the rest; the captives were possibly taken into the forest. A police officer said authorities were trying to verify the number of persons unaccounted for as they look for more bodies.
The focal point of the unrest, northern Rakhine’s Maungdaw district, was once home to a fragile mosaic of ethnic groups, dominated by the Rohingya. Vast swathes of the border region are now completely emptied of Muslims residents, with nearly 40 percent of Rohingya villages abandoned in under a month.
