They are currently at a Bangladesh Border Guard camp in Bandarban’s Tambru, according to a BGB official

Desk Report:

At least 14 members of the Myanmar border security force BGP have fled across the border and taken refuge in Bangladesh amid the ongoing conflict between the Myanmar military and armed insurgents.

They are currently being kept at the Border Guard Bangladesh camp in Bandarban’s Tambru, according to a BGB official.

Asked about the matter, Minister of Home Affairs Asaduzzaman Khan said, “There are about 14 of them. They are called BGP or Border Guard Police.”

“As you know, they have been fighting with the Arakan Army. At one point, they came here and took shelter. We are speaking to the Myanmar government about the matter.”

The BGB said more details will be available on Sunday afternoon at a press conference in the Tambru border area.

The Myanmar military and rebel group Arakan Army have been fighting for the past few months in Arakan, a state near the Bangladesh border. There are reports that the armed insurgents have taken control of several towns and regions previously occupied by the Myanmar military junta.

The fighting in Myanmar has also affected people living on the Bangladesh side of the border. Stray bullets and mortar shells have crossed the border, causing panic among local residents.

Several villages in Bandarban’s Naikhongchhari Upazila and Ukhiya’s Palongkhali border were terrified by gunfire in Myanmar on Saturday night. Several rounds of gunfire were reported on the other side of the Naikhongchhari and Palongkhali borders on Sunday too, locals said.

Bullets fired from across the border have wounded two Bangladeshis in Ghumdhum Union’s Tambru border area. Many locals have already fled to safety, leaving their houses and shops in fear.

A helicopter has already rescued two injured Bangladeshis, said Khaleda Begum, a member of the Ghumdhum union council.

The locals said they had heard Arakan Army insurgents took control of another outpost of Myanmar’s Border Guard Police during the overnight fighting, forcing the 14 guards to take refuge in Bangladesh.

Among the 14 Myanmar border guards, two of them had suffered bullet injuries, according to the locals. The BGB has yet to reveal any information on the matter.