Rohingya leader Mohammad Muhibullah shot dead

Mohammad Muhibullah, a top Rohingya community leader, was shot dead by unknown gunmen at the Kutupalong refugee camp of Ukhiya in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday night.

The 14th APBn commander SP Md. Naimul Haque confirmed that the gun attack took place at around 8:30 pm, reports UNB.

The Rohingya man was first taken to a local medical facility and later referred to o Cox's Bazar Sadar Hospital where the on-duty doctor declared him dead, added Naimul.

Mohibullah was the chairman of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH), one of the leading organisations giving voice to the Rohingya refugees. The ARSPH office inside the Kutupalong camp, the world’s largest refugee settlement, often housed meetings among Rohingya community leaders.    

Mohibullah, a teacher turned rights activist, emerged as a key refugee leader and spokesperson in international meetings. In 2019, he represented his community on a visit to the White House to meet the US president on religious freedom. In that meeting, he voiced the persecution faced by the Rohingya in Myanmar.   

That same year, he led a massive rally within the territory of Bangladesh without taking permission from local authorities to mark the second anniversary of the Myanmar military crackdown.

They subsequently padlocked the ARSPH office, as part of a clampdown on the refugees following a failed repatriation attempt. The office was later allowed to reopen. 

It was there that Mohibullah was killed on Wednesday evening. 

According to Fortify Rights, an international NGO that has done advocacy on behalf of the Rohingya, Mohibullah’s rejection of violence had made him the target of death threats by Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army militants and their sympathisers.