Two more Rohingya refugees killed over murder of Bangladeshi politician

The police said the pair were accused of killing a youth wing politician of the ruling Awami League party, Omar Faruk, who was shot in the head by suspected Rohingya refugees last month.

Head of police in the border district of Cox's bazaar Masud Hossein told AFP that the men were grievously injured in a gun battle with police near Teknaf on early Friday morning, and were declared dead in hospital.

Read more: Fourth Rohingya refugee shot dead in Bangladesh camp

"They are Rohingya miscreants. They were involved in robbery, abduction and drug smuggling," he said, adding they were "accused in the case" of Faruk's murder on August 22.

These killings bring the total number of Rohingya deaths to six in alleged gun battles with the police, according to a count by AFP based on police statements. Hossein said the total was five.

Rights groups have previously accused Bangladesh police of extrajudicial killings.

Hundreds of enraged locals living near Jadimura camp stormed the settlement after Faruk's murder, looting and vandalising scores of Rohingya shops and houses.  

Police said they have stepped up security in the camp, but the European Commission said some refugees have fled Jadimura and were taking shelter at other sites following the violence.

Humanitarian work by aid agencies has also been disrupted, affecting some 100,000 people, the commission said. 

Rohingya leader Mohammad Noor told AFP there was a "tense" atmosphere in the camps and refugees were "living in panic".

The incident comes in the wake of a second failed attempt to begin the repatriation of around 740,000 who fled a 2017 military offensive against the Muslim minority in Myanmar.

At least 36 Rohingya have been killed by Bangladeshi security forces since the 2017 exodus, according to police.

Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has blamed Myanmar for the failure to repatriate the refugees, saying Naypyidaw did not do enough to win the community's trust.

But her government has also started to crack down on activity in the Rohingya camps - Dhaka has imposed a virtual internet blackout by cutting access to 3G and 4G mobile internet networks.

Nearly a million Rohingya live in refugee camps in southeast Bangladesh, 740,000 of whom fled a 2017 military offensive against the Muslim minority in Myanmar.

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