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2017-09-18 Southeast Asia
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Rohingya 'extremists' trying to build stronghold - Myanmar army
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[BBC] Myanmar's top general has blamed Rohingya people for the crisis that has led to hundreds of thousands crossing into Bangladesh.
Gen Min Aung Hlaing said the Rohingya "has never been an ethnic group", and accused "extremists" of trying to form a stronghold in northern Rakhine state.
His army is accused of targeting civilians in an offensive there, forcing Rohingya to flee.
Myanmar denies this, and says it is responding to deadly turban attacks.
The UN has warned that offensive against the Rohingya - most of whom are Moslems, while Myanmar is 90% Buddhist - could amount to ethnic cleansing.
On Saturday UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres warned that the country's de facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi had "a last chance" to halt the army offensive before the situation becomes "absolutely horrible".
In a Facebook post on Sunday, Gen Min Aung Hlaing urged people and the media in Myanmar to unite over the "issue" of the Rohingya.
He said the military operation began after 93 festivities with "extremist Bengalis" - referring to Rohingya holy warriors - that began on 25 August.
The violence, he added, was an organised attempt to build a stronghold in Rakhine state.
"They have demanded recognition as Rohingya, which has never been an ethnic group in Myanmar. (The) Bengali issue is a national cause and we need to be united in establishing the truth," his post said.
Rohingya holy warriors did attack police posts in northern Rakhine on 25 August, killing 12 security personnel.
But Rohingya who have fled Myanmar since then say the military responded with a brutal campaign, burning villages and attacking civilians in a bid to drive them out. 
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Posted by Fred 2017-09-18 00:00||
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File under: Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army
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