Myanmar, Bangladesh Sign Agreement On Rohingya Refugees

BANGKOK (AP) — Myanmar and Bangladesh have signed an agreement covering the return of Rohingya Muslims who fled across their mutual border to escape violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

Myanmar announced the agreement on Thursday but provided no details on how many Rohingya refugees would be allowed to return home or how soon that might happen.

More than 620,000 Rohingya have fled from Myanmar into Bangladesh since Aug. 25, when the army began "clearance operations" following an attack on police posts by a group of Rohingya insurgents.

The office of Myanmar leader Aung San Suu Kyi said the agreement "on the return of displaced persons from Rakhine state" was signed Thursday by Cabinet officials in Naypyitaw, Myanmar's capital.

Rohingya Muslims have faced state-supported discrimination in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar for decades.

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