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Rohingya Solidarity Organisation

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The Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO) is a Rohingya insurgent group and political organisation. It was founded in 1982 following a large scale military operation conducted by the Tatmadaw (Myanmar Armed Forces). The group discontinued its armed rebellion in 1998 but rearmed shortly after the 2021 Myanmar coup d'etat.

Rohingya Solidarity Organisation
LeaderMohammed Ayyub Khan
Foundation1982 (1982)
Dates of operation1982–1998, 2021–present
Active regionsRakhine State
(Bangladesh–Myanmar border)
Ideology
Allies Rohingya Islami Mahaz
Opponents
Battles and warsInternal conflict in Myanmar
Flag
Flag of the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation
Alternate flag of the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation, first used in March 2021

History

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1990s

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In the early 1990s, the military camps of the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation (RSO) were located in the Cox's Bazar District in southern Bangladesh. RSO possessed a significant arsenal of light machine-guns, AK-47 assault rifles, RPG-2 rocket launchers, claymore mines and explosives, according to a field report conducted by correspondent Bertil Lintner in 1991.[1]

The military expansion of the RSO resulted in the government of Myanmar launching a massive counter-offensive to expel RSO insurgents along the Bangladesh-Myanmar border. In December 1991, Tatmadaw soldiers crossed the border and accidentally attacked a Bangladeshi military outpost, causing a strain in Bangladeshi-Myanmar relations. By April 1992, more than 250,000 Rohingya civilians had been forced out of northern Rakhine State (Arakan) as a result of the increased military operations in the area.[2]

In April 1994, around 120 RSO insurgents entered Maungdaw Township in Myanmar by crossing the Naf River which marks the border between Bangladesh and Myanmar. On 28 April 1994, nine out of twelve bombs planted in different areas in Maungdaw by RSO insurgents exploded, damaging a fire engine and a few buildings, and seriously wounding four civilians.[3]

On 28 October 1998, the Rohingya Solidarity Organisation merged with the Arakan Rohingya Islamic Front and formed the Arakan Rohingya National Organisation (ARNO), operating in-exile in Cox's Bazar.[2] The Rohingya National Army (RNA) was established as its armed wing.

2000s to 2010s

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One of the several dozen videotapes obtained by CNN from Al-Qaeda's archives in Afghanistan in August 2002 allegedly showed fighters from Myanmar training in Afghanistan.[4] Other videotapes were marked with "Myanmar" in Arabic, and it was assumed that the footage was shot in Myanmar, though this has never been validated.[2][5] According to intelligence sources in Asia,[who?] Rohingya recruits in the RSO were paid a 30,000 Bangladeshi taka (US$525) enlistment reward, and a salary of 10,000 taka ($175) per month. Families of fighters who were killed in action were offered 100,000 taka ($1,750) in compensation, a promise which lured many young Rohingya men, who were mostly very poor, to travel to Pakistan, where they would train and then perform suicide attacks in Afghanistan.[2][5]

Regional experts in Rakhine State previously disputed the existence of the RSO as an active militant force after the early 2000s.[6] The government of Myanmar blamed the RSO for attacks on border posts in October 2016[7] until the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army claimed responsibility.[8]

2021

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Following the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état by the Tatmadaw, the RSO announced its rearmament in March 2021.[9]

The RSO opposes the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), whom the RSO blames for attacks against Rohingya community leaders in Bangladeshi refugee camps.[10]

2023

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Ko Ko Linn, a spokesperson for RSO and ARNO,[11] allegedly ordered his followers to murder ARSA members in the Ukhiya refugee camp. However, he denied this, claiming a man living in Saudi Arabia made the speech.[12]

2024

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Both Rohingya and Rakhine community members accuse the RSO of forcibly recruiting young men with the false promises of money or revenge against the latter community. Many of them are then handed over to the Myanmar military. Children are among those compelled to fight. [13][14][15]

RSO was blamed for killing two students and a teacher in a refugee camp near Cox’s Bazar for refusing to fight against the Arakha Army on May 30th.[16]

In a September interview with Reuters, Ko Ko Linn confirmed that the RSO and the SAC junta have an informal agreement not to attack each other. However, he denied active collaboration with the Myanmar military, and claimed that the Arakan Army repeatedly rebuffed prior attempts to form an alliance.[17]

During the Arakan Army's early December attack on BGP Post 5 in Maungdaw, RSO fighters reportedly fought alongside junta forces. After BGP Post 5 was captured, the RSO allegedly robbed refugees fleeing on the Naf River.[18]

References

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  1. ^ Lintner, Bertil (19 October 1991). Tension Mounts in Arakan State. This news-story was based on interview with Rohingyas and others in the Cox's Bazar area and at the Rohingya military camps in 1991: Jane’s Defence Weekly.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location (link)
  2. ^ a b c d "Bangladesh Extremist Islamist Consolidation". by Bertil Lintner. Archived from the original on 22 June 2012. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  3. ^ "Rohingya Terrorists Plant Bombs, Burn Houses in Maungdaw". Archived from the original on 14 October 2013. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  4. ^ "Rohingyas trained in different Al-Qaeda and Taliban camps in Afghanistan". By William Gomes. Archived from the original on 3 January 2018. Retrieved 22 October 2012.
  5. ^ a b "Bangladesh: Breeding ground for Muslim terror". by Bertil Lintner. Archived from the original on 12 October 2002. Retrieved 21 October 2012.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  6. ^ "Experts Reject Claims of 'Rohingya Mujahideen' Insurgency". 15 July 2013. Archived from the original on 29 August 2016. Retrieved 16 August 2016.
  7. ^ "Myanmar: Fears of violence after deadly border attack". Al Jazeera. Archived from the original on 12 October 2016. Retrieved 13 October 2016.
  8. ^ "Islamist fears rise in Rohingya-linked violence". Bangkok Post. Post Publishing PCL. Retrieved 5 November 2016.[dead link‍]
  9. ^ "Rohingya armed groups active again in Western Myanmar". The Irrawaddy. Archived from the original on 19 March 2023. Retrieved 20 September 2021.
  10. ^ Ahasan, Nazmul (2 February 2023). "In Bangladesh's border with Myanmar, 2 Rohingya militant groups fight for dominance". Radio Free Asia. Archived from the original on 4 April 2023.
  11. ^ BANGLADESH: Rohingya community leader Ko Ko Linn abducted and his whereabouts remains unknown. November 20, 2017. Asian Human Rights Commission. Archived April 1, 2023, at the Wayback Machine
  12. ^ Questions raised about audio recording urging mass killings. February 26, 2023. Dhaka Tribune. Archived January 9, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  13. ^ Kidnapped and conscripted: Rohingya taken from Bangladesh refugee camps, handed over to Myanmar military. Su Chay. Myanmar Now. May 16, 2024.
  14. ^ A time to talk and coexist: An open letter to Arakan Army chief Twan Mrat Naing. Dr. Nyi Nyi Kyaw. Myanmar Now. May 20, 2024. Archived May 24, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  15. ^ Rohingya Forced to Fight Alongside Myanmar Army Tormentors. Agence France-Presse. May 29, 2024. Archived May 29, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  16. ^ Gunmen murder Rohingya teacher and student in Bangladesh. May 30, 2024. Agence France-Presse. Republished in The Hindu. Archived May 30, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
  17. ^ Exclusive: On Myanmar's frontline, Rohingya fighters and junta face a common enemy Devjyot Ghoshal. September 6, 2024. Archived September 7, 2024, at Ghost Archive
  18. ^ Unravelling the Maungdaw Exodus: new report sheds light on factors driving large-scale Rohingya displacement in Maungdaw Kaladan Press. December 17, 2024. Archived December 18, 2024, at the Wayback Machine
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