Landslides in Bangladesh kill at least eight Rohingya refugees, including children

What happened

The DVB English service reports that landslides caused by heavy monsoon rains in southeastern Bangladesh have killed at least eight Rohingya refugees, including five children, according to officials on Tuesday. Dollar Tripura, a Fire Service and Civil Defense official in Cox’s Bazar district, told The Associated Press that rescuers recovered seven bodies while an eighth was located by refugees themselves after several hills collapsed between late Sunday and Monday morning.

Outside Brief is treating this as a source-led account. Any disputed responsibility, casualty figure, battlefield claim or single-source assertion should be treated as unconfirmed/hearsay unless confirmed by another reliable source or a named official. Tripura described the terrain conditions, saying continuous rain and hillside torrents loosened the soil on slopes, causing makeshift houses to collapse and burying shelters under mud and debris while residents slept. The landslides struck across at least four locations within the camps, leading to casualties and injuries, including two children who were reported wounded.

Officials are working to relocate refugees from at-risk hilly areas within the camps. So far approximately 1,000 people have been moved to safer locations. The Bangladesh Meteorological Department in Dhaka has forecast ongoing rain in the coming days, raising concerns about further landslide risks. The UNHCR has documented at least 36 refugee deaths and 86 injuries from similar landslides within the camps from 2021 to 2026.

Known from the source

• At least eight Rohingya refugees, including five children, died in landslides triggered by heavy monsoon rains in Cox’s Bazar refugee camps, Bangladesh.
• Seven bodies were recovered by rescuers and one by refugees themselves.
• Continuous rain and hillside torrents loosened soil causing hills to collapse and bury shelters.
• The landslides affected at least four different camp locations while residents were asleep.
• Two additional children were found injured from the incident.

What remains unclear

More than one million Rohingya refugees who fled violence and persecution in Myanmar live in camps across Cox’s Bazar and other parts of Bangladesh. Renewed fighting between Myanmar’s military and the ethnic Arakan Army in Rakhine State raises the prospect of additional refugee flows across the border, compounding humanitarian challenges related to shelter, safety, and access to aid.

What remains unclear: Confirm whether the central claim is corroborated; until then treat it as unconfirmed/hearsay. Verify the precise casualty figures and whether they include any newly discovered victims post-recovery. Confirm the exact camp locations affected by the landslides and the scope of destruction. Corroborate statements on injuries and rescue outcomes from independent humanitarian sources.

Evidence note

Outside Brief has kept this brief source-led and attributed. Claims should be read alongside the original source linked below.

Original source: DVB English. Open the source.