November 27, 2016
The raid conducted by Tatmadaw in the Maungdaw North village tract of Lound Don is likely to have killed dozens, say local sources. The Tatmadaw went into the Hatipara neighbourhood of the village on the early morning hours of Friday and opened indiscriminate machine gunfire, as Rohingya men, women and children were seen dropping on the spot, report eyewitnesses.
The Tatmadaw then rounded up many of the male survivors, and took them to the hills. Here some of the elderly men were released after being brutally assaulted, with many returning to the village with serious head injuries. More than 40 younger men were however taken to the direction of the hills. Sporadic gunfire from that direction have fuelled speculations they might have been killed.
Soldiers have kept up a heavy presence in the area till Saturday night and those who have not escaped had been kept hostage. As a result of the situation, communications with Rohingyas in the area have been extremely difficult and the death toll cannot be confirmed by our correspondents in the area.
While Lound Don has been under continuous assault since October, Friday’s raid on the populace is the deadliest so far.
Tatmadaw also entered Nga Sa Gru and opened fire, reportedly killing many people. The village tract has been hit with heavy weapons in the first days of the crackdown with dozens were believed to have been killed back then.
Multiple women were gang raped on both the occasions. Out of them at least four women, are in critical condition after being raped many times. They gave the account of numerous men raping them one by one, for a very long time, from the neighbouring village tract of Singri para where many have escaped.
On Friday evening, troops entered the restive village tract of Kawa Bil from the west and began conducting a house to house search. In the name of searching for valuables, they molested women by touching their private parts and passing lewd comments. Many of the women were brutally assaulted when they expressed discomfort. At least one woman was taken out of the village and raped.
Few arrests were also made during the raid. Two have been identified as Abdu Shukkur and Md Jamil.
Since Friday, the Tatmadaw had once again intensified their presence around Kawa Bil, Maung Hna Ma and Nari Bil.
On Saturday, the Tatmadaw advanced towards the Dokhin para neighbourhood of Maung Hna Ma and rounded up scores of men and women and forced them to lie on an open field. Six women were taken to a secluded place and gang raped.
Many of the males were taken to the Hlun Htein station. It is feared they are being brutall tortured in custody. Many of them are teenage boys.
Torture in custody have killed more than a hundred people since 2012, even before the latest round of violence started in October.
Troops also poured in the Major para and Hasari para of the village tract and began removing valuables from Rohingya households. The looted goods were taken away in seven lorries used by the Tatmadaw. Men in civilian clothing accompanied soldiers during the loot.
Troops were also seen moving towards the direction of Sor Fordin Bil on Saturday but details are not clear.
