Key facts
- Myanmar verified 308,797 displaced people in Bangladesh as former residents of Rakhine State.
- Repatriation is contingent on improved security conditions in Rakhine State.
- Over 700,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh in 2017 after a crackdown.
- Myanmar identified 4,241 individuals on the repatriation list as involved in terrorist activities.
- Myanmar is currently engaged in conflict with the Arakan Army in Rakhine State.
Myanmar's military government has confirmed that nearly 309,000 displaced individuals in Bangladesh are former residents of Rakhine State. However, the foreign ministry stated that repatriation efforts will only commence once security conditions in Rakhine improve.
As of July 31, 2026, Myanmar verified 308,797 individuals out of 828,824 submitted names as former Rakhine residents. The United Nations estimates that over 700,000 Rohingya fled to Bangladesh in 2017 following a crackdown by Myanmar security forces, with many continuing to leave.
Myanmar claims to have identified 4,241 individuals on Bangladesh's repatriation list as being involved in terrorist activities, while an additional 113,507 could not be verified. The government emphasized that repatriation is strictly a bilateral matter with Bangladesh and will only begin when security in Rakhine State becomes more stable. The military is currently engaged in conflict with the Arakan Army, an ethnic armed group seeking greater autonomy in the region.
Previous repatriation arrangements in 2018 and 2019 failed to result in any returns despite bilateral preparations. Myanmar had agreed to accept 5,000 Rohingya asylum seekers from Malaysia, but Malaysia indicated that repatriation would not proceed if their lives were at risk.