The Rohingya people have faced an atrocious act against them this week. The 1.1 million people who live in Southeast Asia have recently been attacked in one of the most horrific acts of violence against a group of people. The Myanmar army has elevated the “clearance operations” against the Rohingya people. The army has called the Rohingya people terrorists after they committed acts of violence against the police, killing 12 policemen.

The “cleansing”, as the Myanmar Army has called it, consists of refugees who have suffered through mass rape, murder and arson, according to those refugees who have escaped. One woman from western Myanmar said, “They killed and killed and piled the bodies up high. It was like cut bamboo”. The Myanmar government has denied the acts of violence committed against the refugees.

Rohingya people is a Muslim section of Myanmar that was formed in the 1950’s. Most recently, in the past three years, there have been high tensions between the Rohingya Muslims and the Rakhine Buddhists, the Rakhine Buddhists being the majority in Myanmar. Since these tensions have risen, Rohingya people have had to move and have been rejected in most areas of the state. They are one of the most rejected minorities in current history.

As of last week, the violence escalated. Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May, encouraged the Burma government to involve themselves and settle tensions so that the UK government can help to aid the victims of the crisis.

Since late August, Bangladesh has been flooded with 615,000 Rohingya people who have fled from Myanmar. The United Nations has called this crisis “a textbook example of ethnic cleansing”.

The horrific actions occurring in Southeast Asia have been occurring for decades against the Rohingya Muslims. The Rohingya people have been deprived of citizenship for centuries. The United Nations and United Kingdom are aiding the refugees, however the crisis faced very little press in American World News. Awareness should be spread on this genocide against the Rohingya Muslims, and help should be provided for those in need.