Myanmar Army Pillage Rohingya Villages, Assaults Women and Desecrates Mosque and Quran

RB News 

October 24, 2016 

Maungdaw, Arakan – The Myanmar Army raided three villages in Maungdaw Township and sexually assaulted Rohingya women, looted from houses and shops and tore pages of the Quran out as well as burning the Quran and urinating inside a mosque. 

On October 23th, 2016, the Myanmar military based at the primary school in Zedi Pyin hamlet of Laung Don village tract raided houses in Zedi Pyin and Sin Thay Pyin hamlets. The Rohingya men fled from the hamlet to escape torture by the military. Since there were no men in the hamlet, about 20 women from Lower Zedi Pyin hamlet gathered at the home of the hamlet-in-charge head Zawfor Alom in order to help each other. 

On October 24th, 2016, at around 7am the military based at the primary school in Zedi Pyin hamlet separated into 3 groups and one left for Sin Thay Pyin hamlet in Laung Don village tract, one left for Pan Myaing hamlet in Nga Sar Kyu village tract and one left for the nearby mountains and raided many places. 

Lower Zedi Pyin Hamlet 

Today, October 24th, 2016 at around 7am soldiers reached a house in Lower Zedi Pyin where 20 women were staying temporarily. The women refused to open the door as they afraid when the soldiers knocked, but the soldiers broke the door and assaulted the women. 

When the women tried to escape the soldiers opened fire. Another 30 soldiers joined them after hearing the gunshots. The soldiers then forced the women to gather in one place outside of the house and selected 7 women to take away but the women bravely escaped. After the women escaped the military raided the house beside the house of Zawfor Alom and hit 65-year-old Amir Hussein in the head with a gun. The man is seriously injured and suffering still now. After the soldiers left the women counted took a head count and found two women were missing but later they found them at a nearby house in hiding. 

Sin Thay Pyin Hamlet 

At 7am a group of 30 soldiers raided East Sin Thay Pyin sub-hamlet and forced the women out from over 300 houses and gathered them in the middle of the hamlet. The soldiers and NaTaLa villagers then started looting from the houses from East Sin Thay Pyin sub-hamlet and also looted seven shops and took away all things to NaTaLa village until 6pm. The value of goods from the seven shops may be more than Seven Million Kyat, according to locals. The soldiers and villagers also looted all chickens, ducks, pigeons and goats from the houses. 

After they completed looting the soldiers ordered the women back home, where they found their houses emptied. 

Pan Myaung

Soldiers raided 15 houses in Pan Myaung hamlet of Nga Sa Kyu village tract and beat the women there. They then looted gold, cash, solar panel systems and other valuables from the houses. They also looted the goods from three shops. 

The soldiers were seen entering the mosque and tearing out pages of the Quran, as well as burning the quran and urinating inside of the mosque.

Report contributed by MYARF.