Mass grave of 28 Hindus found in Myanmar; Army blames Rohingya `militants`

Yangon division: Myanmar`s Army said on Sunday that a mass grave of 28 Hindus had been discovered in Rakhine state.

They blamed the killings on Rohingya 'militants'.

"Security members found and dug up 28 dead bodies of Hindus who were cruelly violently and killed by ARSA (Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army) extremist Bengali terrorists in Rakhine State," a statement posted on the Army chief`s website said.

The ARSA is the group whose raids on police posts in August triggered a military backlash that resulted in hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees fleeing for Bangladesh. 

Rights groups say there is overwhelming evidence that the Army is using its crackdown on militants to systematically purge the 1.1-million strong stateless Rohingya from its borders, PTI reported.

However, Myanmar has dismissed accusations of ethnic cleansing, saying it has to tackle the insurgents, whom it accuses of setting fires and attacking civilians as well as the security forces, as per Reuters.

More than 420,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled to Bangladesh since August 25.

Rohingyas, who trace their roots back generations in Myanmar, are a stateless minority who have mostly been stripped of their citizenship in the predominantly Buddhist country.

Tensions between the communities have simmered for decades and exploded into violence several times in recent years.

Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi has faced a barrage of international criticism over their plight, for not speaking out more forcefully against the violence or doing more to rein in security forces over which she has little power.

(With Agency inputs)