Britain pledges £70 million to assist Rohingya as monsoon season looms

The UK has pledged an additional £70 million of humanitarian support for the Rohingya people in Bangladesh amid the looming cyclone and monsoon season.

The rainy season could wash away fragile and cramped makeshift shelters and cause fatal diseases to spread more rapidly in the huge camps in Cox’s Bazar near the Burmese border.

International Development Secretary Penny Mordaunt described the scale of the crisis as “growing daily”.

She added: “The UK is leading the way to help vaccinate people against a deadly cholera outbreak, strengthen shelters and provide vital food and water to vulnerable Rohingya families, who have already been forced to flee their homes because of brutal violence and persecution.”

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya men, women and children have fled to neighbouring Bangladesh following persecution from the Burmese military. The £70m will be used to try and help 200,000 people with much-needed materials to strengthen their shelters and 300,000 people with food assistance and clean water.