Three people were trampled by a wild elephant that rampaged through a Rohingya refugee camp on Thursday, highlighting the ecological strain the refugee crisis has put on forests in southeastern Bangladesh.
The deceased include two Rohingya children and a Bangladeshi man. At least five others were injured, including an elderly Rohingya man, who was hospitalized for severe injuries. The elephant also destroyed at least seven homes.
Footage captured by filmmaker Shafiur Rahman shows hundreds of Rohingya refugees chasing the elephant through rows of bamboo and tarpaulin huts in the Kutupalong refugee camp – one of the most populous refugee camps in the world.
Elephant in Kutupalong #Rohingya #refugee camp today. These events are becoming more frequent. pic.twitter.com/YvKg3rgdH6
— Shafiur Rahman (@shafiur) February 22, 2018
The elephant trampled some huts and I understand two small children were killed in Block 12, Kutupalong #rohingya #refugee camp – as the elephant made its way out. pic.twitter.com/fiUdEAjHqp
— Shafiur Rahman (@shafiur) February 22, 2018
The refugees eventually managed to chase the elephant back into a nearby forest.
The camp has swelled drastically in the months following the launch of Myanmar’s clearance operations in Rakhine State, which have pushed more than 680,000 Rohingyas over the border into Bangladesh in less than six months.
Thousands acres of forest have had to be cleared to make way for the camps, disrupting the migratory routes of around 100 elephants that live in the area. At least 13 people have been killed by elephants in the area since the refugee crisis began, according to Bangladeshi officials.
We drove past these elephants in the mornings on our way to the Rohingya refugee camps. pic.twitter.com/x87CEF7tHZ
— Ibn Taymiyyah (@Seditious_medic) February 22, 2018
One Bangladeshi official said in October: “The government has no other option without any other land at its disposal.”
An arrangement to repatriate Rohingya refugees to Myanmar has stalled, with critics of the deal say Myanmar has not guaranteed the civil rights or freedom of movement of returnees. Several emptied Rohingya villages have been bulldozed, and the facilities where returnees will be housed have been described as prison camps.
Without any apparent solutions to the problem, the refugees are forced to remain in the path of the migrating beasts.
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