12 die in militant attacks

AT least 12 people, including five police officers, were killed yesterday in Myanmar’s restive Rakhine state as Rohingya militants launched pre-dawn raids on border posts, according State Counsellor Aung San Suu Kyi’s office.

It is the worst violence for months in the coastal state bisected by religious hatred and follows a milestone report by a commission led by former UN chief Kofi Annan urging action to heal the divide.

More than 20 police posts came under attack by about 150 militants early yesterday, prompting soldiers to fight back, Ms Suu Kyi’s office said.

“Currently, five police officers have been killed and ... according to initial information, we have seven bodies of the extremist Bengali terrorists,” it said. “Many police posts and stations were attacked.”

It said homemade mines were used in one attack.

Police in Buthidaung town, close to the worst violence, said border guard posts remained surrounded by militants as day broke.

“The situation is complicated ... the military is arriving,” an officer said.

The northern wedge of Rakhine closest to Bangladesh has been in lockdown since October 2016 deadly attacks by militants on border posts sparked a military response that left scores dead and forced tens of thousands to flee.

The UN believes those security “clearances” may have amounted to ethnic cleansing of the Rohingya, a mainly Muslim minority living in Buddhist Myanmar.

The army and Ms Suu Kyi’s civilian government vehemently deny allegations of widespread abuses including rape and murder.