27 August 2026
The UN experts jointly made a news release and the Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and related intolerance made a separate media statement on 25 August 2026, concerning the ninth anniversary of terrorist attacks against state security forces and innocent civilians in northern Rakhine State, which took place in August 2017.
The news release and the statement failed to mention coordinated terrorist attacks committed by Aqa Mul Mujahideen, aka ARSA, on 25 August 2017 against 30 security outposts and an army base in northern parts of Rakhine State, which killed security forces, government officials, and innocent people.
The ARSA committed similar attacks against three police outposts in October 2016 in northern Rakhine State, killing police officers and innocent people. Well in advance of the large-scale attacks in 2017, the ARSA claimed the lives of Bengali administrators in Rakine State who resisted their terrorist acts. Such violent extremism effectively forces the displacement of the Bengali population to the neighbouring country, along with false hope of resettlement in third countries.
According to the records, more than 740,000 Bengalis resided in Buthidaung, Maungdaw and Rathedaung townships in Rakhine State prior to the ARSA terrorist attacks. Following the incidents, more than 200,000 Bengalis remained in these areas whereas more than 540,000 Bengalis were displaced to Bangladesh. Based on these figures, the narrative referring to more than one million displaced persons from Rakhine State has been found to be inaccurate.
The Government of Myanmar is committed to receive the displaced persons who have been verified as former residents of Rakhine State in accordance with three bilateral agreements with Bangladesh when the security situation in Rakhine State becomes more stable.
Permanent Mission of the Republic of the Union of Myanmar to the United Nations Office and other International Organizations
GENEVA