Bangladesh, Bandarban | January 28, 2026: Indigenous Tanchangya villagers in Bandarban’s Naikhongchhari upazila have reported multiple violent attacks in late January, highlighting a worsening security crisis in the Chittagong Hill Tracts, where Indigenous communities say they are now facing violence not only from long-standing militarization and settler pressure, but also from armed Rohingya groups operating beyond refugee camps.

 

Local residents reported that three Indigenous villagers were assaulted in separate incidents in Ghumdhum Union, a border-area union adjacent to Rohingya camps near the Bangladesh–Myanmar frontier.

 

In one incident on January 24, a young Indigenous man from Jamirtali village was stopped while walking alone in the evening and later beaten and threatened. Family members said the man has lived with mental health challenges since birth. He had earlier attended a religious event at a Buddhist monastery in Teknaf and was returning on foot when he was intercepted, taken toward a camp-adjacent area, and assaulted before being released.

 

Relatives said the victim was held for several hours and subjected to intimidation and physical violence, leaving him traumatized. No explanation was given for his detention, and no assistance was reported from local security forces following the incident.

 

In a separate incident on January 22, two other Indigenous villagers, a woman and a man, were attacked while collecting forest resources in a garden area several kilometers from their village in the same union. Local residents said the two were confronted by three armed Rohingya men, locally identified as being linked to armed Rohingya groups, including elements associated with the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA).

 

According to villagers’ accounts, the two were forcibly taken to a nearby hilly area and beaten. The woman was later released after receiving death threats, while the male victim was detained for nearly three hours and subjected to repeated physical assault before being freed. Before leaving, the attackers reportedly warned the villagers not to enter forested or hilly areas again and threatened further violence.

 

Indigenous residents say these incidents reflect a growing pattern in Naikhongchhari, where armed Rohingya groups are increasingly seen operating outside the formal boundaries of refugee camps. Community members say fear has spread across Indigenous villages, with many now avoiding traditional forest areas essential for livelihood due to the risk of attack.

 

Local Indigenous leaders expressed concern that despite the long-standing and heavy military presence across the Chittagong Hill Tracts, Indigenous civilians remain unprotected. They say the same security apparatus that tightly controls Indigenous movement has failed to prevent armed Rohingya groups from attacking Indigenous villagers in border areas.

 

Security analysts note that while the Bangladesh government officially denies any involvement with Rohingya armed groups, the continued operation of such groups inside and beyond refugee camps points to a serious enforcement failure. Despite extensive security deployment across the region, armed Rohingya factions have been able to expand their reach into surrounding Indigenous areas, raising concerns that the inability to effectively dismantle these networks has placed Indigenous communities at heightened risk.

 

The Bandarban region has long been affected by disputes over land rights, militarization, and settler expansion. Since the arrival of more than one million Rohingya refugees in southeastern Bangladesh following the 2017 Myanmar military crackdown, Indigenous communities in border areas have repeatedly warned that the growing presence of armed Rohingya groups has further destabilized the local security balance.

 

Indigenous residents fear that without urgent, neutral protection and accountability, the Chittagong Hill Tracts risk becoming a space where Indigenous people are exposed to violence from multiple fronts – state control, settler encroachment, and armed Rohingya groups, while their own safety remains a secondary concern.