Arakan News Agency
Three children, one teenager and an elderly man were severely assaulted on last Saturday by Army personal in Kullung, Southern Maungdaw Arakan. The youngest victim is only eight years old.
One of the victims is in critical condition.
The teenager was named Md Ayoub and he was coming back to his village from the grazing grounds when Army personal caught him and started beating him up with wooden batons. They only stopped after he was severely injured.
The same group of Army then chased other cow herders and assaulted those they could get their hands on.
Livestock such as cattle and sheep are major assets and a source of income for Rohingya households. Activists say this is a calculated attack to deter the Rohingyas, mostly small boys from taking their cattle and other livestock to the grazing grounds, and thus close down another source of livelihood for the beleaguered community.
Rohingya men, most of them currently dependent on logging and fishing for their survival have faced severe restrictions from going to the woods and waterways to earn a livelihood. Many who ventured out have faced attacks by Rakhine Buddhist miscreants or security forces.
All of this seems to be a calculated ploy to enforce an economic blockade, create artificial starvation and force the populace to move out to Bangladesh, according to Rohingya Muslim activists.
The injured include Saleh Ahmed, 55, Abdu Shukkur, 12, Hefzur Rahman, 11 and Omar Farooque, 8.
Meanwhile the teenage boy Ayoub continues to be in a critical condition till filing of the report.
