Rohingya 'genocide intensifying' as war rages in Myanmar's Rakhine: BROUK

A UK-based rights group, the Burmese Rohingya Organisation UK (BROUK), has called for global action against what it describes as an "intensifying genocide" of Myanmar's mostly Muslim Rohingya minority. 

This comes as fighting escalates between Myanmar's military and the Arakan Army (AA) in the western Rakhine State, reports Al Jazeera. 

The United Nations' World Food Programme (WFP) condemned the looting and burning of its food stores and warehouse in Maungdaw, a town on the Bangladesh border.

The AA, representing Rakhine's Buddhist majority, issued evacuation orders for Maungdaw ahead of a planned offensive, leaving tens of thousands of Rohingya residents with "nowhere to flee," according to the UN's human rights chief. 

The Rohingya have long faced persecution in Myanmar, including a 2017 military crackdown that drove around 750,000 into Bangladesh. The crackdown is now the subject of a genocide case at the International Court of Justice (ICJ).

BROUK's new report highlights the severe persecution of the remaining 600,000 Rohingya in Rakhine since fighting resumed in October between the military and the AA. 

It accuses the military of depriving the Rohingya of essential resources and forcibly recruiting them, including children, to fight against the AA. Both the military and the AA have committed war crimes, including murder, torture, and sexual violence, according to BROUK.

BROUK President Tun Khin warned of a significant increase in violence against the Rohingya, criticizing the UN Security Council's inaction. He stated that the failure to protect the Rohingya has resulted in "hundreds, if not several thousands" of deaths in the past six months alone. 

The group called for an open UN Security Council meeting to address the military's violations of the ICJ's orders and to end the "cycle of impunity" in Myanmar, possibly through a referral to the International Criminal Court or the creation of an international tribunal.

The renewed conflict has displaced some 45,000 Rohingya to the Bangladesh border, with reports of widespread arson and beheadings by the AA. 

The WFP reported that fighting has cut off access to its warehouse in Maungdaw since May, which was later looted and burned. The warehouse contained 1,175 tonnes of food, enough to sustain 64,000 people for a month. The WFP called on all parties to respect humanitarian facilities and ensure safe access for aid delivery.