106 Myanmar border guard personnel take refuge in Bangladesh: BGB

At least 106 members of Myanmar's Border Guard Police (BGP) fled to Bangladesh and took refuge in a Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) outpost in Turmbru, Bandarban after being attacked by rebels.

Shariful Islam, public relations officer of Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB), said 106 BGP members have so far entered Bangladesh through Tumbru border in Naikhangchhari upazila of Bandarban district with arms and ammunition due to the ongoing clashes inside Myanmar.

These people have been taken to safety after the weapons they carried with them were deposited in the Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB) cache, he said.

The injured BGP men are undergoing treatment in different hospitals in Cox's Bazar district.

Rebel factions in Arakan state have engaged in clashes with Myanmar's military junta since Saturday (3 February), primarily over the control of a border camp. The ongoing conflict has been marked by persistent gunfire, mortar shells, and rocket explosions. 

Officials have reported intense fighting, and there are concerns about the use of army helicopters strafing rebel fighters, heightening worries of substantial casualties.

International media reports suggested several more insurgent groups, some forming alliances among them, are confronting the government army in several parts of Myanmar.

Meanwhile, two people were killed this afternoon after heavy mortar shells reportedly fired from Myanmar landed and exploded inside Bangladesh on the Ghumdum border in Bandarban.

Bangladesh's border with Myanmar stretches 271.0 kilometers (168.4 miles), from the tri-point with India in the north to the Bay of Bengal in the south.