UN Refugee Chief Urges Action for Rohingya and Myanmar Crisis

Arakan Now | 29 April 2025

UN High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi, told the UN Security Council that the situation in Myanmar has worsened over the last eight years. Ongoing fighting between the Myanmar military (Tatmadaw) and armed groups has caused great suffering and forced many people to flee their homes. A recent earthquake has made things even worse.

The Rohingya community is facing the hardest impact. Brutal clashes between the Myanmar army and the Arakan Army in Rakhine State have led to more violence. Today, around 1.2 million Rohingya live as refugees—mostly in crowded camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.

Grandi thanked Bangladesh for sheltering the refugees. But he warned that conditions in the camps are getting worse. Refugees can’t work, have no control over their lives, and fully depend on aid, which is running low. Half of them are children. Many young people are turning to the internet for hope, but with no future in sight, some risk their lives on dangerous boat journeys. Others fall into the hands of armed groups.

Grandi said this crisis cannot continue. He noted that the temporary government in Bangladesh is trying to talk with groups involved in the Rakhine conflict. He said this is a good step. While peace is still far off, talking with all sides is the only way forward.

He urged the international community to support these efforts. Aid groups like the UNHCR need to return to Rakhine and help people again. That would open the door for possible safe and voluntary return of the Rohingya in the future.

Grandi ended by urging the UN to stay focused on Myanmar and support bold action. He also looked ahead to a key conference in New York this September.