Rohingya Leader Mohibullah assassinated; ARSA is widely believed to be behind the assassination
On September 29, 2021, Mohibullah, 46, chair of the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH), was shot and killed by unidentified gunmen in Kutupalong camp in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.
Mohibullah had served as a leader among the nearly one million Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, documenting the Myanmar military’s crimes against the Rohingya and advocating for the refugees’ rights in international forums. Mohibullah had faced death threats in recent years for his work.
“Mohibullah was a vital voice for the community of Rohingya who had already suffered unimaginable loss and pain when they arrived as refugees in Bangladesh,” said Meenakshi Ganguly, South Asia director at Human Rights Watch. “He always defended the rights of the Rohingya to safe and dignified returns and to have a say in the decisions concerning their lives and future. His killing is a stark demonstration of the risks faced by those in the camps who speak up for freedom and against violence.
“Mohibullah’s death undermines not only the struggle of Rohingya refugees for greater rights and protection in the refugee camps, but also their efforts to safely return to their homes in Myanmar. Bangladesh authorities should urgently investigate Mohibullah’s killing along with other attacks on Rohingya activists in the camps.”
DPA Notes: Initial assumption from us is that this is the work of ARSA (Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army). As ARSA had been trying very hard to build up their movement in the refugee camps in Bangladesh, while they are losing ground massively to the United League of Arakan / Arakan Army within Myanmar’s Rakhine/Arakan region.
A quick search, seems like we are not alone in our analysis.
The brother of slain Rohingya community leader Mohib Ullah on Thursday blamed insurgents for murdering him in a Bangladesh refugee camp because of his popularity and rights work.
Habib Ullah told AFP that his brother received death threats from the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army in recent months and at least eight men from the group took part in the attack.
“ARSA forces have committed this murder. They often threatened to kill my brother from different (phone) numbers,” he said.
“ARSA did not just kill our brother, they killed our great leader.”
Mohammad Nowkhim, a spokesman for Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARPSH), said Mohibullah was talking to other Rohingya leaders outside the ARPSH office at Kutupalong, the world’s largest refugee settlement, when an unidentified assailant shot him three times.
“He was in a pool of blood. He was brought dead to the nearby hospital,” Nowkhim said from a hideout, adding that many Rohingya leaders had gone into hiding after the killing.
No one claimed responsibility, but a Rohingya leader said Mohibullah was killed by an extremist group known as Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army, which was behind several attacks on Myanmar security posts in recent years “It is a work of ARSA,” he said.
A senior member of Mohibullah’s group also blamed ARSA, saying the militant group was enraged by his growing popularity in the refugee camps and his work, which gave the “Rohingya a non-violent, progressive and liberal voice of reason”.
Rights activist Nur Khan Liton said Mohibullah told him earlier this month that he had received death threats from ARSA after his rights group expanded to all the Rohingya refugee camps.
“His peaceful activism angered ARSA,” Liton told AFP.
Who was Mohibullah?
Mohibullah had set up the Arakan Rohingya Society for Peace and Human Rights (ARSPH), a community-based rights group that documented atrocities allegedly committed against the group by the Myanmar military during a 2017 offensive. He had emerged as a key refugee leader and a spokesman representing the Muslim ethnic group in international meetings. He visited the White House in 2019 for a meeting on religious freedom with then-President Donald Trump and spoke about the suffering and persecution faced by Rohingya in Myanmar.
Later, the same year, the former schoolteacher was bitterly criticised by Bangladeshi media after he led a massive rally of 200,000 refugees to mark the second anniversary of the crackdown by Myanmar’s military that caused about 700,000 Rohingya, including Mohibullah, to flee to neighboring Bangladesh.
https://www.firstpost.com/world/brother-of-slain-rohingya-leader-blames-arakan-rohingya-salvation-army-for-mohibullahs-murder-10012691.html
This is a massive setback for the Rohingya as they tries to find their feet and a solution to statehood, either with Bangladesh or with Myanmar (looking unlikely unless the military junta loses power)
However, this is likely going to work badly for ARSA, as Mohibullah is a beloved personality among the Rohingya. Killing a popular leader is going create disillusionment among those that were on the fence with regards to ARSA.