by Hafizur Rahman
Kutupalong Refugee Camp, Cox’s Bazar | August 5, 2026
An 11-month-old Rohingya boy was critically injured in a shooting inside his family’s shelter in Camp 2 East in Ukhiya on Tuesday night, according to the Armed Police Battalion.
The injured child, identified as Mohammad Arman, was taken to the Médecins Sans Frontières hospital in Kutupalong for emergency treatment. He reportedly sustained a gunshot wound to the abdomen.
The incident occurred at approximately 8:30 p.m. in Block E-06 of the camp.
The 14 Armed Police Battalion arrested the child’s father, Abdur Mobin, shortly after the shooting. Police allege that a firearm in his possession discharged inside the shelter and struck his infant son.
The firearm had not been recovered at the time of reporting. Police said an operation was underway to locate the weapon and establish the full circumstances surrounding the shooting.
Local residents rushed to the shelter after hearing the gunshot. They found the injured child and took him to the MSF hospital for treatment.
According to the 14 APBn, Abdur Mobin initially claimed that members of the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army had attacked him and that he had also been shot.
Officers who examined him reportedly found no gunshot injury. Police therefore alleged that he had fabricated the account in an attempt to conceal how the child was wounded.
The APBn also alleged that Abdur Mobin is affiliated with the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation. Rohingya Khobor could not independently verify either his alleged organisational affiliation or the police account of how the firearm discharged.
Additional Deputy Inspector General Mohammad Siraj Amin, commanding officer of the 14 APBn, said legal proceedings had been initiated against the arrested man.
He said security personnel were conducting a special operation to recover the weapon allegedly used in the shooting and would continue operations against unauthorised firearms in the refugee camps.
The incident has renewed concern about the presence of firearms inside densely populated camps, where an accidental or deliberate shooting can place children and neighbouring families at immediate risk.
Authorities have not yet publicly disclosed the child’s latest medical condition, the type of weapon involved, or whether any firearm-related charge has formally been filed against the suspect.
