Rohingya militants, whose attacks triggered an army crackdown in Myanmar’s Rakhine State, unleashing a huge wave of refugees, said on Saturday their one-month ceasefire would end in two days, but added they were open to a peace deal if the government offered it.
In a statement released through its Twitter account, the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA) said its unilateral truce would end at midnight on October 9.
“The humanitarian pause was conducted in order to enable humanitarian actors to assess and respond to the humanitarian crisis in Arakan [Rakhine],” the statement said.
No direct threats
“If at any stage, the Burmese government is inclined to peace, then ARSA will welcome that inclination and reciprocate,” it added, using the former name for Myanmar. The statement did not include any direct threats of new violence.
Myanmar’s government spokesman did not respond to requests for comment on Saturday but has previously said the country did not “negotiate with terrorists.”
The ARSA said it had helped provide “safe passage” to refugees fleeing to Bangladesh. While the worst of the bloodshed appears to have abated in recent weeks, tens of thousands of Rohingya continue to stream over to Bangladesh.