Reports of shootings, allegedly by Myanmar police, at a camp for Rohingya refugees in Rakhine state have sparked concern by United Nations officials.

Knut Ostby, the U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, tweeted that he is "deeply concerned about the reports of shooting in Ah Nauk Ye camp in central #Rakhine, #Myanmar which holds IDPs who fled violence in 2012. I call for calm, non-violence and restraint. "

I am deeply concerned about the reports of shooting in Ah Nauk Ye camp in central #Rakhine, #Myanmar which holds IDPs who fled violence in 2012. I call for calm, non-violence and restraint. Our statement: pic.twitter.com/Fz2dd2SFLx — Knut Ostby (@knutostby) November 18, 2018

The Reuters news agency quotes eyewitnesses as saying Myanmar police shot and injured four Rohingyas Sunday, while detaining two men accused of smuggling people out of a camp for displaced people in western Rakhine state.

The report said about 20 police descended on Ah Nauk Ye camp, 15 kilometers east of the state's capital Sittwe, and apprehended the two men who were accused of owning the "rickety vessel," used in an attempt to smuggle 160 people, including 25 children, out of the camp. The watercraft was stopped south of Yangoon.

An eyewitness told Reuters that when the police came into the camp "people from the camp went out to look and police shot at people."

The police, however, told the news agency that Rohingyas surrounded them with swords and threw stones at them. "I heard that Bengali from the camp tried to grab the arrested people back from the police and police had to fire warning shots," police inspector Than Htay from a nearby police station, said.

People from Myanmar call the Rohingya Muslims "Bengali," implying they are from Bangladesh and not from Myanmar.

None of the first Rohingya Muslims on a list to return to Myanmar showed up at their departure points in Bangladesh Thursday, the first day they were scheduled to be sent back under a repatriation agreement between the two nations.

About 150 Rohingya refugees were slated to be transported from the crowded camps in Cox's Bazar back to northern Rakhine state, the region where they and more than 700,000 others escaped in August 2017 from a scorched earth campaign by Myanmar's military in response to a series of attacks committed by Rohingya militants. Some of the refugees on the list are believed to have gone into hiding to avoid being sent back.

Meanwhile, about 1,000 angry Rohingyas, including children, demonstrated against the repatriation effort at one of the camps.

Bangladesh Refugee Commissioner Abul Kalam told reporters that the refugees cannot be forced to return to Myanmar under the terms of the agreement.

Human rights groups are calling on Myanmar and Bangladesh to end their plans to send Rohingya Muslims back to Rakhine State, where the United Nations says they are subject to extrajudicial killings and other atrocities carried out by Myanmar's military.

Amnesty International called the organized return of the Rohingya a "reckless move, which puts lives at risk."

"These women, men and children would be sent back into the Myanmar military's grasp with no protection guarantees, to live alongside those who torched their homes and whose bullets they fled," said Nicholas Bequelin, Amnesty's East and Southeast Asia director.

Bill Frelick, the refugee rights director for Human Rights Watch, said Dhaka "will be stunned to see how quickly international opinion turns against it if it starts sending unwilling Rohingya refugees back into harm's way in Myanmar."

A special U.N. fact-finding mission said the military acted "with genocidal intent" against the Rohingyas, citing numerous atrocities such as extrajudicial killings, gang rapes and the torching of entire villages.</s>Myanmar's military on Tuesday sentenced seven personnel to 10 years in prison and hard labor as alleged accomplices in the killing of 10 Rohingya Muslims in troubled Rakhine state, where the country's security forces carried out a brutal crackdown against the minority group, officials said.

The military personnel also were permanently expelled from the army, according to a statement released by the army chief on an official Facebook page.

The army in January made a rare admission that its soldiers had killed 10 Rohingya villagers who were captured and accused of being "terrorists" during insurgent attacks last year in Inn Din village in northern Rakhine. The military said its soldiers confessed to carrying out the slayings.

The army's statement Tuesday said an investigative group under the military had interrogated 21 military personnel, three police officers, 13 security forces, six civil servants and six Inn Din villagers. It said the investigation proved that the soldiers violated the law by killing the villagers.

"For the military personnel under the Military Act 71, four military personnel and three soldiers will be sentenced to 10 years in prison with hard labor and to be permanently expelled from the army," the statement said.

Myanmar's security forces launched brutal counterattacks against Rohingya Muslims after a Rohingya insurgent group attacked police outposts on Aug. 25. The military called it a "clearance operation" against the terrorists, but the U.S. and the United Nations branded it an "ethnic cleansing" after the army's operation drove nearly 700,000 Rohingya into neighboring Bangladesh.

The military said in a statement on Dec. 18 that a mass grave containing 10 bodies of "Bengali terrorists" had been found on the outskirts of Inn Din village in northern Rakhine's Maungdaw region. Local authorities and the military have carried out an investigation since.

The government usually refers to Rohingya Muslims as "Bengalis," a term that denies they belong to Buddhist-majority Myanmar and implying they are illegal migrants from Bangladesh.

At least 6,700 Rohingya Muslims were killed between August and September during the crackdown, international aid group Doctors Without Borders said in December after conducting a field survey.

Little or no information has been revealed because the Myanmar government has denied humanitarian workers and independent media access to northern Rakhine.</s>A key U.N. committee overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday strongly condemning the continuing "gross human rights violations and abuses" against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country's military.

The General Assembly's human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbors China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favor.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar's military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017.

It urgently calls on Myanmar's government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be "Bengalis" from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar's military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.

The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates "deep distress" at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar's military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses "grave concern" at the findings of the U.N. fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission's report and calls for "a full and independent investigation" of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.

Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, speaking on behalf of the OIC, called the commission's findings "devastating."

He said "people have been trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and forced displacement" for years in Myanmar and the events of August 2017 against the Rohingya are "only the latest episode of this cycle."

"Without a comprehensive strategy, reaching an enduring solution to this crisis is impossible," Sinirlioglu said.

He said the OIC believes the only solution is the voluntary return of the Rohingya to their homes with their basic rights "guaranteed" — but he said this will not be possible "without holding the perpetrators responsible for their crimes."

Myanmar's U.N. ambassador, Hau Do Suan, called the resolution "politically motivated and one-sided and discriminatory." He accused the global media and human rights champions of concentrating on Myanmar and Rakhine state — where the remaining Rohingya live — when money could be better spend helping starving people in Yemen and elsewhere.

"Adoption of this and other ill-intentioned, selective and politically motivated resolutions will not help at all our efforts to solving the issue of Rakhine state, but would rather lead to further polarization and escalation of tensions among different religious communities in the country," Hau said. "It will only aggravate distrust between the people of Myanmar and the international community."</s>More than 1,000 Buddhists in a Myanmar state wracked by religious and ethnic strife protested Tuesday's arrival of former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan, saying the Ghanaian is meddling in the country's affairs by leading a government-appointed commission to find solutions to the conflict.

The Southeast Asian country set up the commission last month to help find solutions to "protracted issues" in western Rakhine state, where human rights groups have documented widespread abuses by majority Rakhine Buddhists against minority Rohingya Muslims.

The state's dominant Arakan National Party and the Rakhine Women Network led the protest about 300 meters (yards) from the airport in Sittwe, the Rakhine capital, where Annan and other members of the Rakhine Advisory Commission arrived Tuesday morning. As Annan's car passed, the crowd shouted, "Dismiss the Kofi Annan-led Rakhine Advisory Commission now."

"We came here because we don't want that foreigner coming to our state," said May Phyu, a local Rakhine Buddhist resident. "I don't know exactly what this group is and what they are doing, but I came here to protest as I don't like them to come here.

"I cannot accept them talking about the Rakhine and kalar case in our state," said protester Soe Thein. "Kalar" is a derogatory word used in Myanmar to refer to Muslims.

Many Buddhists in Rakhine and across Myanmar consider Rohingya to be Bangladeshis living in the country illegally, though the ethnic group has been in Myanmar for generations. Hundreds of Rohingya were killed and tens of thousands forced to flee their homes in 2012 unrest in Rakhine state, and many continue to be confined to squalid camps there.

"We are here to help provide ideas and advice," Annan said at the Rakhine state government office, where he met government and police officials, community leaders and members of nongovernmental organizations.

"To build the future, the two major communities have to move beyond decades of mistrust and find ways to embrace, share values of justice, fairness and equity," he said. "Ultimately, the people of Rakhine state must charge their own way forward."

Before Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi's government created the commission, her international reputation as a Nobel Peace Prize-winning democracy icon had been diminished by what some have viewed as her inaction on the Rohingya issue. Her government still does not even use the word "Rohingya."

"You will see for yourself all the problems on the ground now," Suu Kyi, officially Myanmar state counselor and foreign minister, told Annan and other commission members at a news conference Monday. "You will be able to assess for yourself the roots of the problems itself, not in one day, not in one week. But I am confident that you will get there, that you will find the answers because you are truly intent on looking for them."

The commission is to address human rights, ensuring humanitarian assistance, rights and reconciliation, establishing basic infrastructure and promoting long-term development plans.

During their six-day Rakhine trip, the commission will visit the Rohingya camps and meet members of political and religious groups. But the Arakan National Party said it will not meet or work with the commission.

"Rakhine state is in Myanmar and our country has its own sovereignty and there is no way we can accept a commission that is formed by foreigners," ANP official Aung Than Wai said Tuesday.</s>A key United Nations committee has overwhelmingly approved a resolution strongly condemning the continuing "gross human rights violations and abuses" against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country's military.

The General Assembly's human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbours China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favour.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar's military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017.

It urgently calls on Myanmar's government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be "Bengalis" from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar's military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.

The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates "deep distress" at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar's military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses "grave concern" at the findings of the UN fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission's report and calls for "a full and independent investigation" of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.</s>UNITED NATIONS — A key U.N. committee overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday strongly condemning the continuing "gross human rights violations and abuses" against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country's military.

The General Assembly's human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbors China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favor.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar's military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017.

It urgently calls on Myanmar's government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be "Bengalis" from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar's military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.

The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates "deep distress" at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar's military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses "grave concern" at the findings of the U.N. fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission's report and calls for "a full and independent investigation" of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.

Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, speaking on behalf of the OIC, called the commission's findings "devastating."

He said "people have been trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and forced displacement" for years in Myanmar and the events of August 2017 against the Rohingya are "only the latest episode of this cycle."

"Without a comprehensive strategy, reaching an enduring solution to this crisis is impossible," Sinirlioglu said.

He said the OIC believes the only solution is the voluntary return of the Rohingya to their homes with their basic rights "guaranteed" — but he said this will not be possible "without holding the perpetrators responsible for their crimes."

Myanmar's U.N. ambassador, Hau Do Suan, called the resolution "politically motivated and one-sided and discriminatory." He accused the global media and human rights champions of concentrating on Myanmar and Rakhine state — where the remaining Rohingya live — when money could be better spend helping starving people in Yemen and elsewhere.

"Adoption of this and other ill-intentioned, selective and politically motivated resolutions will not help at all our efforts to solving the issue of Rakhine state, but would rather lead to further polarization and escalation of tensions among different religious communities in the country," Hau said. "It will only aggravate distrust between the people of Myanmar and the international community."</s>A key UN committee overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday strongly condemning the continuing “gross human rights violations and abuses” against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country’s military. The General Assembly’s human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbours China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favour.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar’s military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017. It urgently calls on Myanmar’s government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be “Bengalis” from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar’s military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes. The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organisation of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates “deep distress” at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar’s military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses “grave concern” at the findings of the UN fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya. It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission’s report and calls for “a full and independent investigation” of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.

Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, speaking on behalf of the OIC, called the commission’s findings “devastating.” He said “people have been trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and forced displacement” for years in Myanmar and the events of August 2017 against the Rohingya are “only the latest episode of this cycle.”

“Without a comprehensive strategy, reaching an enduring solution to this crisis is impossible,” Sinirlioglu said. He said the OIC believes the only solution is the voluntary return of the Rohingya to their homes with their basic rights “guaranteed” — but he said this will not be possible “without holding the perpetrators responsible for their crimes.” Myanmar’s UN ambassador, Hau Do Suan, called the resolution “politically motivated and one-sided and discriminatory”. He accused the global media and human rights champions of concentrating on Myanmar and Rakhine state — where the remaining Rohingya live — when money could be better spend helping starving people in Yemen and elsewhere.

“Adoption of this and other ill-intentioned, selective and politically motivated resolutions will not help at all our efforts to solving the issue of Rakhine state, but would rather lead to further polarization and escalation of tensions among different religious communities in the country,” Hau said. “It will only aggravate distrust between the people of Myanmar and the international community.”</s>YANGON (Reuters) - Myanmar police shot and injured four Rohingya Muslims on Sunday, after detaining two men accused of smuggling people out of a camp for displaced people in western Rakhine state, a witness and police told Reuters.

Some 20 police entered Ah Nauk Ye camp, about 15 km (9 miles) east of the state capital Sittwe on Sunday morning, apprehending the two men accused of owning a boat used in an attempt to smuggle 106 Rohingya out of the country on Friday.

The rickety vessel, which carried 25 children among its passengers, had been bound for Malaysia when authorities stopped it south of Yangon, detaining those on board. The incident, and similar recent boat departures, have raised fears of a fresh wave of dangerous voyages after a 2015 regional crackdown on people smugglers.

Maung Maung Aye, a 27-year-old Rohingya Muslim from the camp who witnessed the shooting, told Reuters four people were injured in the incident, with two of them in serious condition.

“People from the camp went out to look and police shot at people,” he told Reuters by phone.

Police said the Rohingya surrounded them with swords and threw stones at them, injuring some officers.

“I heard that Bengali from the camp tried to grab the arrested people back from the police and police had to fire warning shots. I heard some Bengali got injured. I don’t know the details,” said police inspector Than Htay from a nearby police station.

Many people in Myanmar call the Rohingya “Bengali,” implying they are interlopers from Bangladesh.

Maung Maung Aye disputed that version of events. He said the Rohingya did not attack the police or try to grab the arrested men. He said police fired at residents and not into the sky.

Myanmar government spokesman Zaw Htay did not answer calls seeking comment.

Tens of thousands of Rohingya have been confined to camps outside Sittwe since violence swept Rakhine in 2012. They are denied free movement, access to decent healthcare and education.

In August last year, Solidarites International, an international aid group, warned the conditions at Ah Nauk Ye, home to more than 4,000 Rohingya, were severe.

It said the “natural environment” at the camp was “unsuitable to human settlement” and warned of water shortages, poor access to livelihood opportunities and communal violence.

For years, the Rohingya have boarded boats organized by smugglers in the dry months between November and March, when the sea is calm. The perilous journey to Thailand or Malaysia, often undertaken in overcrowded vessels, has cost many lives.

The 106 Rohingya detained off Yangon on Friday were put on a navy ship destined for the Rakhine camps on Sunday.

More than 700,000 Rohingya fled a brutal army crackdown in the northern part of Rakhine last year, according to U.N. agencies. U.N. investigators have accused the Myanmar army of “genocidal intent” and ethnic cleansing.

Myanmar denies the allegations genocide, saying it was battling terrorists. Attacks by Rohingya insurgents preceded the army’s crackdown that began in late August 2017.</s>UNITED NATIONS — A key U.N. committee overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday strongly condemning the continuing “gross human rights violations and abuses” against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country’s military.

The General Assembly’s human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbors China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favor.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar’s military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017.

It urgently calls on Myanmar’s government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be “Bengalis” from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar’s military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.

The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates “deep distress” at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar’s military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses “grave concern” at the findings of the U.N. fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission’s report and calls for “a full and independent investigation” of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.

Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, speaking on behalf of the OIC, called the commission’s findings “devastating.”

He said “people have been trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and forced displacement” for years in Myanmar and the events of August 2017 against the Rohingya are “only the latest episode of this cycle.”

“Without a comprehensive strategy, reaching an enduring solution to this crisis is impossible,” Sinirlioglu said.

He said the OIC believes the only solution is the voluntary return of the Rohingya to their homes with their basic rights “guaranteed” — but he said this will not be possible “without holding the perpetrators responsible for their crimes.”

Myanmar’s U.N. ambassador, Hau Do Suan, called the resolution “politically motivated and one-sided and discriminatory.” He accused the global media and human rights champions of concentrating on Myanmar and Rakhine state — where the remaining Rohingya live — when money could be better spend helping starving people in Yemen and elsewhere.

“Adoption of this and other ill-intentioned, selective and politically motivated resolutions will not help at all our efforts to solving the issue of Rakhine state, but would rather lead to further polarization and escalation of tensions among different religious communities in the country,” Hau said. “It will only aggravate distrust between the people of Myanmar and the international community.”

Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.</s>A key U.N. committee overwhelmingly approved a resolution Friday strongly condemning the continuing "gross human rights violations and abuses" against Rohingya Muslims who are treated as outsiders in Myanmar and were victims of a brutal campaign by the country's military.

The General Assembly's human rights committee approved the resolution by a vote of 142-10, with 26 abstentions. It is virtually certain to be formally adopted by the 193-member world body in December.

Among those voting against the resolution were Myanmar neighbours China, Cambodia and Laos along with Russia. Bangladesh, which hosts 1.1 million Rohingya refugees, voted in favour.

The resolution expresses deep concern that violence by Myanmar's military against the Rohingya has forced over 723,000 people to flee to Bangladesh since August 2017.

It urgently calls on Myanmar's government to end discrimination and provide a path to citizenship for the embattled minority.

Buddhist-majority Myanmar has long considered the Rohingya to be "Bengalis" from Bangladesh even though their families have lived in the country for generations. Nearly all have been denied citizenship since 1982, effectively rendering them stateless, and they are also denied freedom of movement and other basic rights.

The latest crisis began with attacks by an underground Rohingya insurgent group on Myanmar security personnel in August 2017 in northern Rakhine State. Myanmar's military responded with a brutal campaign and is accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of homes.

The resolution, sponsored by the 57-nation Organization of Islamic Cooperation, the European Union and Canada, reiterates "deep distress" at reports that unarmed Rohingya are still being subjected to excessive use of force and rights violations by Myanmar's military and security forces, including killings and rapes.

The resolution expresses "grave concern" at the findings of the U.N. fact-finding mission on Myanmar, which concluded that some top Myanmar military leaders should be prosecuted for war crimes, crimes against humanity and genocide against the Rohingya.

It strongly condemns all rights abuses set out in the commission's report and calls for "a full and independent investigation" of human rights abuses against the Rohingya and other minorities.

Turkish Ambassador Feridun Sinirlioglu, speaking on behalf of the OIC, called the commission's findings "devastating."

He said "people have been trapped in a vicious cycle of violence and forced displacement" for years in Myanmar and the events of August 2017 against the Rohingya are "only the latest episode of this cycle."

"Without a comprehensive strategy, reaching an enduring solution to this crisis is impossible," Sinirlioglu said.

He said the OIC believes the only solution is the voluntary return of the Rohingya to their homes with their basic rights "guaranteed" -- but he said this will not be possible "without holding the perpetrators responsible for their crimes."

Myanmar's U.N. ambassador, Hau Do Suan, called the resolution "politically motivated and one-sided and discriminatory." He accused the global media and human rights champions of concentrating on Myanmar and Rakhine state -- where the remaining Rohingya live -- when money could be better spend helping starving people in Yemen and elsewhere.

"Adoption of this and other ill-intentioned, selective and politically motivated resolutions will not help at all our efforts to solving the issue of Rakhine state, but would rather lead to further polarization and escalation of tensions among different religious communities in the country," Hau said. "It will only aggravate distrust between the people of Myanmar and the international community."
Myanmar police fire warning shots at a crowd of Rohingya Muslims after arresting two human smugglers at a camp for displaced persons near Sittwe, Rakhine State. Four people are injured directly by the gunfire, prompting the U.N. Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator to call for "calm and restraint".