Child shot by stray bullet from Myanmar clashes still alive: Police
Some 49 members of a Rohingya armed group have been detained after they fled to Bangladesh amid violence
A child who was shot by a bullet fired during clashes inside Myanmar that spilt into Bangladesh in Cox's Bazar's Teknaf border area is still alive but remains in critical condition, according to police.
"The seven-year-old girl has been taken to Chattogram Medical College Hospital [CMCH] for advanced treatment," Whykong Police Outpost In-Charge Sub-Inspector (SI) Khokon Chandra Rudra confirmed this afternoon (11 January).
Earlier, the police official had said that bullets fired from the Myanmar side hit a Bangladeshi residential house near the border, killing a child. Initial reports claimed the child had died.
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SI Rudra later clarified that the information was incorrect, as the child's parents and local residents initially believed the child had died after being shot.
"Later, it was confirmed that the child was alive. She was first treated at an MSF-run hospital in Kutupalong and then referred to CMCH," he added.
The incident occurred around 9am today in the Techchhibridge border area of Whykong Union under Teknaf Upazila. Several others were reportedly injured, though their names and identities could not be confirmed immediately.
Quoting local residents, SI Rudra said intense fighting broke out this morning inside Myanmar, just across the border, between the rebel group Arakan Army and an armed Rohingya group, whose identity could not be immediately confirmed. The two sides reportedly exchanged gunfire for at least an hour.
"At one point, members of the Rohingya armed group retreated towards the zero line and took positions there. Around 9am, clashes intensified again. During this time, bullets fired from the Myanmar side hit a Bangladeshi home near the border," he said.
Upon receiving the information, members of the police, Rapid Action Battalion (RAB), Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), and Armed Police Battalion (APBN) rushed to the area.
BGB Cox's Bazar Sector Commander Colonel Mohiuddin Ahmed said 49 members of a Rohingya armed group crossed into Bangladesh through the Whykong border after failing to withstand the clashes on the Myanmar side.
"BGB and police took them into custody immediately after they entered Bangladesh," he said.
Shah Jalal, acting chairman of Whykong Union, said rumours of the child's death led local residents to block roads in protest.
"Law enforcement agencies and local representatives intervened and calmed the situation," he said.
The 49 Rohingya armed group members remain in police custody and will be formally handed over to the BGB, officials added.
