Rohingya refugees amid human-elephant conflict

Dhaka: Rohingya couple Yakub Ali and Anwara Begum survived the deadly military crackdowns in Myanmar's Rakhine State in October 2016 and August 2017 that left scores of their persecuted community brutally abused and murdered.

They crossed the border into Bangladesh from Maungdaw in October last year with two daughters and a son to find sanctuary at Kutupalong refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, which now shelters about 400,000 Rohingya.

But the family's dream of starting life all over again came crashing down on Jan. 19 when a wild elephant trampled 45-year-old Yakub to death and destroyed their makeshift tent.

"We were woken by the screaming of people nearby and, before we realized what was going on, a huge elephant smashed our tent. My husband died in the attack and I got injured while fleeing with the children," Anwara, 40, told ucanews.com.

Yakub was the sole breadwinner for the family as a day laborer for humanitarian groups supporting up to one million refugees huddled in overcrowded camps in Cox's Bazar.

"Now we are surviving completely on mercy relief from aid groups," Anwara said.

About 300,000 refugees were in the area before August 2016. The two crackdowns forced an exodus of more than 770,000 Rohingya to Bangladesh, according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR).

The massive influx of Rohingya saw more than 1,200 hectares of forest land cleared for shelters for refugees in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh's most popular tourist destination thanks to the world's largest unbroken sea beach.

Cox's Bazar's Ukhiya and Teknaf subdistricts are known for lush green coastal forests and natural habitats for rare wildlife species including birds and Asian elephants. Ukhiya and Teknaf houses all the refugee camps and they cut through the crossing points and migration routes of elephants from Myanmar to Bangladesh and vice versa.

This human-elephant conflict has seen 13 refugees killed in elephant attacks since August last year, according to the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN).

Clearing of forests for human habitation has endangered wildlife in the area including elephants, according to Ali Kabir, divisional forest officer in Cox's Bazar.

"If you live in an elephant's habitat, the inevitable is not unexpected. Thousands of hectares have been cleared and refugees collect 800 metric tons of firewood from the forest every day. We fear that if deforestation continues at this rate there will be no more forest left out by the end of 2019," Kabir told ucanews.com.

Kabir said the cutting of trees must stop and refugee settlements that blocked traditional elephant migration corridors need to be relocated to keep refugees safe from elephant attacks and deaths.

The UNHCR and IUCN carried out a joint survey covering 70 square kilometers of Cox's Bazar. It revealed a traditional elephant migration route has been completely blocked due to new refugee settlements, and about 35-45 Asian elephants are living in the forest of the southern part of Cox's Bazar. There are about 93 migratory and 96 captive Asian elephants in Bangladesh, and they are critically endangered, according to the IUCN.

"Elephants always follow traditional path for migration, and the blocked crossing point was a bridge for them for movement between Rakhine and Cox's Bazar. Now, elephants are trying to find the lost corridor by entering camps from various sides, and casualties are taking place," IUCN country representative Raquibul Amin told ucanews.com.

The IUCN and UNHCR have formed 30 elephant response teams of 10-12 people in the camps. They are also setting up 92 elephant watchtowers, more response teams and training.

"We have set up 26 watchtowers and others are being constructed. We would like to form 46 teams and offer training to about 500 people," Amin said.

Two persons are on duty at the watchtowers at night and early morning, when elephants usually move, and they warn others when they spot an elephant. Then the team tries to make the elephant return to the forest.

Teams have successfully tackled seven elephant intrusions to the camps in recent months, Amin said.

"This is a temporary solution, and we are not sure how long this protection system can work. We need to work more on it and see if we can come up with a permanent solution," he added.

Panic among refugees over elephant attacks has reduced if not vanished, said James Gomes, regional director of Catholic charity Caritas Chittagong, which is active in refugee camps.

"Even one month ago, people had sleepless nights fearing elephant attacks. They had never faced such a threat and didn't know what to do. The situation is better but refugees are still vulnerable, and more work needs to be done to sort out an effective plan ," Gomes told ucanews.com.

Back at her reconstructed tent in Kutupalong, Anwara Begum says she can sleep well with her children now. "I am less frightened because I know there are guards watching over elephant movements," she said.

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Elephant kills elderly man in Ctg

Chattogram, July 13 (UNB) – A wild elephant trampled an elderly man to death in Mohammedpur area of Anowara upazila on Friday morning.

The deceased was identified as Abdur Rahman, 70, of the area.

Dulal Hossain, officer-in-charge of Anowara Police Station, said the elephant attacked the elderly man at dawn while he was going to a nearby mosque to perform Fazr prayers.

Saddam Hossain, a member of Boirag Union Parishad, said wild elephants frequently get down from Deang Hill and damaged houses and crops in the area.

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Elephant kills elderly man in Ctg

Chattogram, July 13 (UNB) – A wild elephant trampled an elderly man to death in Mohammedpur area of Anowara upazila on Friday morning.

The deceased was identified as Abdur Rahman, 70, of the area.

Dulal Hossain, officer-in-charge of Anowara Police Station, said the elephant attacked the elderly man at dawn while he was going to a nearby mosque to perform Fazr prayers.

Saddam Hossain, a member of Boirag Union Parishad, said wild elephants frequently get down from Deang Hill and damaged houses and crops in the area.


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Wild elephant tramples minor boy to death

Sundergarh: In yet another incident of man-animal conflict in the state, a wild elephant trampled a five-year-old boy to death in Kokerema village under Hatibari police limits in the district last night.

The deceased has been identified as Rahul Badaika.

The victim was sleeping outside his house along with the family when the attack took place. A wild elephant which had sneaked into the village in search of food reached near the victim and crushed his head. He died on the spot.

However, rest of the family woke up hearing the screams of the victim and managed to save their lives.

Biramitrapur Forest Ranger reached the spot along with a team of officials this morning and took stock of the situation. He also announced of the compensation under the existing government provision for the victim family.

The incident has left people in a state of panic in the village as a herd of elephant has been seen roaming around the village for past few days.
 

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Elephant found dead in Sherpur

A wild elephant was found dead at bordering Gandhigaon village in Jhenaigati upazila on Tuesday morning.

Md Rafiqul Islam, beat officer of Gazni beat of Department of Forest in Jhenaigati upazila, said locals spotted the elephant 25/30 yards off Gandigaon Bonrani rest house and informed the forest office.

On information, officials of the forest department recovered the body around 7am.

The official said that the body bore an injury mark under its right ear.

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‘Tusk force’ set up to protect refugees and elephants in Bangladesh

UNHCR and the International Union for Conservation of Nature are working together to mitigate incidents between elephants and humans in the world’s largest refugee settlement.

KUTUPALONG CAMP, Bangladesh – Battered and badly bruised, Anwar Begum, a Rohingya refugee, surveys the damage around her bamboo shelter.

Sleeping mats ripped apart; plastic buckets and even metal cooking pots and plates torn and dented. Her shelter was toppled – but neighbours in Kutupalong refugee settlement near Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, have helped her re-erect it.

“I’m very grateful, thanks to the almighty, to be alive,” the 45-year-old said. “But I’m terrified.”

Just a few days earlier, in the middle of the night, a wild elephant entered her small shelter and killed her husband, 50-year-old Yakub Ali. It was one of several elephants that wandered into the camp, damaging shelters and injuring their occupants, following their usual migratory path.

Anwar and her family fled their home in Myanmar six months ago, settling in the vast Kutupalong refugee settlement. “We weren’t aware of any elephant presence here,” she said. “I remember once seeing elephants back home in Myanmar, but in the distance – never close up like this.”

Clearly shaken, Anwar recounted the events that occurred that night. “It was around 1 a.m. I heard a heavy sound and felt the roof falling onto us. It was quick and loud. I started screaming. It all went very fast and my husband was killed”.

Anwar was treated in hospital for three days. By the time she came back to the settlement, neighbours had helped to rebuild her shelter. UNHCR’s partners have now provided her with new household items, and Anwar has received counselling from UN Refugee Agency protection staff.
UNHCR and its partner IUCN – the International Union for Conservation of Nature – have now launched an action plan to try to prevent incidents like this, which have resulted in the deaths of at least 10 refugees, including young children, in Kutupalong settlement.

“This partnership is critical not only to ensure the conservation of elephants, but to protect refugees.”

The highly congested site, which used to be forest land, lies along one of the migratory routes between Myanmar and Bangladesh for critically endangered Asian elephants.

The so-called ‘tusk force’ will work with both the local host community and refugees, in close consultation with the Bangladesh Forest Department and the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner’s Office.

Mitigation plans include installing watch-towers in key spots around the settlement, as well as setting up Elephant Response Teams who can sound the alarm if elephants enter the site. Elephant routes and corridors will be clearly marked, so that people will know which areas to avoid. Campaigns will also be carried out to create better awareness of the risks.

“This partnership is critical not only to ensure the conservation of elephants, but to protect refugees, a number of whom have tragically already lost their lives,” said Kevin Allen, UNHCR’s head of emergency operations in Cox’s Bazar district.

The project is part of a wider initiative by UNHCR and the IUCN to mitigate some of the environmental impacts linked to the establishment of refugee settlements in Cox’s Bazar.

Other plans include carrying out environmental education and awareness among refugees and the host communities about the importance of forest resources as well as taking steps to improve the environment in the refugee settlement areas and nearby surroundings.

The project leaders will also advocate for reforestation programmes to ensure that natural resources and a shared environment are better protected.

Your support is urgently needed to help refugee children, women and men in Bangladesh


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Rohingya influx deals blow to Bangladesh’s wild elephant population

The influx of the displaced Rohingya has a dealt a double blow to the wild elephant population inhabiting Bangladesh’s Chittagong region.

Shortage of food and destruction of habitat forced the elephants to venture out, leading to clashes with humans. Five elephants have been killed between November 21 last year and January 22 – three of them from electrocution and landmine-related injuries.

Conservationists say elephants are known as ecosystem’s engineers and gardeners since they play a vital role in forest enhancement by disbursing seeds and creating an environment for germination.

Elephant dung plays a crucial role in nutrient cycling by providing nutrients to the soil that is ultimately used by the flora. It is also a good source of food for many insects, experts say.

Since the latest spell of Rohingya crisis, Myanmar security forces planted landmines and erected barbed wire fence along its border with Bangladesh, obstructing the trans-boundary migratory routes of the giant mammals.

On the other hand, shelters set up for the Rohingya – which led to the destruction of 4,000 acres of forestland – also blocked the wild elephants’ routes. The Rohingya are destroying forest resources to meet their daily demand of firewood of 800 tons.

Obstruction of the passages and destruction of forests have forced elephants to seek alternative routes and triggered crop-raiding incidents.

Nearly 690,000 Rohingya escaped to Bangladesh after Myanmar security forces launched a brutal ‘clearance operation’ targeting the minority in last August. Another 100,000 Rohingya had crossed the border earlier following violence in the Rakhine state in October 2016.

The presence of the huge number of people and encroachment of forests has made the wild elephants more desperate in their search for food and water. Between September 17 last year and January 19, seven Rohingya were trampled to death by wild elephants in Ukhiya and Balukhali refugee camps.
But as many as five wild elephants have also been killed in the last three months.

“Unnatural death of an adult female elephant is a great loss since she is a repository of traditional knowledge, including the migration routes,” wildlife biologist Dr AHM Raihan Sarker told the Dhaka Tribune.

He said the wild elephants turned violent as they were pushed to the limit.

“The trans-boundary corridors (Balukhali-Naikhyangchhari-Myanmar and Balukhali-Ghundhum-Myanmar) turned dangerous for the migratory elephants as Myanmar security forces planted landmines along the borders,” he noted.

“Besides, routes used by the elephant have been blocked to make space for refugee camps,” he added.
Elephants consume equivalent to 1.5% of their body weight every day and usually the quantity of fodder ranges from 135kg to 300kg for adults, the expert said. The wild elephants invade crop fields as they are an easy source of food.

“It is natural for the farmers to protect their crop from raiding animals. But it is the responsibility of the forest officials to keep a strict vigil to avert any casualty of wild animals,” he said.
He suggested adopting an action plan urgently to save the mammals.

Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmed, a former country representative of the IUCN Bangladesh, said elephants were among protected animals under the Wildlife Act, adding that the forest department should investigate the repeated incidents of death of the wild elephants.

Eminent wildlife conservationist Reza Khan cited a study which showed that the elephants naturally browse on at least 50 species of plants and eat fruits of over a dozen trees.

Deforestation and changing patterns in forestry created a severe shortage of food for elephants and other animals.

He said many people had encroached on forest lands and occupied routes used by elephants. The illegal land occupiers sometimes use electrical fences and poison-laced food items to deter elephants raiding their crops or dwellings, the former IUCN member said, demanding punishment for the offenders.

“Rampaging wild elephants entering human settlements should be tranquillized and moved to remote areas where there are existing elephant populations,” Khan told the Dhaka Tribune. “To reduce human-elephant conflicts, the government must ensure sufficient supply of food and water inside the forest.”

When contacted, Md Jahidul Kabir, conservator of forests (wildlife and nature conservation circle), said they were going to undertake a special project in consultation with the IUCN.

Wildlife biologist Raihan said wild elephants played a significant role in protecting natural forests, adding: “The conservation of elephants should be a mandatory task to ensure their survivability.”

Dr Anisuzzaman Khan, biodiversity researcher and chief adviser to Isabela Foundation, said, “People all over the world keep a close eye on the state of tigers and elephants. Infrastructural development of a country becomes meaningless and the country suffers from an image deficit if tigers or elephants meet unnatural death.”

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Rohingya influx deals blow to Bangladesh’s wild elephant population

As many as five wild elephants have been killed between November 21 last year and January 22

The influx of the displaced Rohingya has a dealt a double blow to the wild elephant population inhabiting Bangladesh’s Chittagong region.

Shortage of food and destruction of habitat forced the elephants to venture out, leading to clashes with humans. Five elephants have been killed between November 21 last year and January 22 – three of them from electrocution and landmine-related injuries.

Conservationists say elephants are known as ecosystem’s engineers and gardeners since they play a vital role in forest enhancement by disbursing seeds and creating an environment for germination.

Elephant dung plays a crucial role in nutrient cycling by providing nutrients to the soil that is ultimately used by the flora. It is also a good source of food for many insects, experts say.

Since the latest spell of Rohingya crisis, Myanmar security forces planted landmines and erected barbed wire fence along its border with Bangladesh, obstructing the trans-boundary migratory routes of the giant mammals.

On the other hand, shelters set up for the Rohingya – which led to the destruction of 4,000 acres of forestland – also blocked the wild elephants’ routes. The Rohingya are destroying forest resources to meet their daily demand of firewood of 800 tons.

Obstruction of the passages and destruction of forests have forced elephants to seek alternative routes and triggered crop-raiding incidents.

Nearly 690,000 Rohingya escaped to Bangladesh after Myanmar security forces launched a brutal ‘clearance operation’ targeting the minority in last August. Another 100,000 Rohingya had crossed the border earlier following violence in the Rakhine state in October 2016.

The presence of the huge number of people and encroachment of forests has made the wild elephants more desperate in their search for food and water. Between September 17 last year and January 19, seven Rohingya were trampled to death by wild elephants in Ukhiya and Balukhali refugee camps.

But as many as five wild elephants have also been killed in the last three months.



“Unnatural death of an adult female elephant is a great loss since she is a repository of traditional knowledge, including the migration routes,” wildlife biologist Dr AHM Raihan Sarker told the Dhaka Tribune.

He said the wild elephants turned violent as they were pushed to the limit.

“The trans-boundary corridors (Balukhali-Naikhyangchhari-Myanmar and Balukhali-Ghundhum-Myanmar) turned dangerous for the migratory elephants as Myanmar security forces planted landmines along the borders,” he noted.

“Besides, routes used by the elephant have been blocked to make space for refugee camps,” he added.

Elephants consume equivalent to 1.5% of their body weight every day and usually the quantity of fodder ranges from 135kg to 300kg for adults, the expert said. The wild elephants invade crop fields as they are an easy source of food.

“It is natural for the farmers to protect their crop from raiding animals. But it is the responsibility of the forest officials to keep a strict vigil to avert any casualty of wild animals,” he said.

He suggested adopting an action plan urgently to save the mammals.

Ishtiaq Uddin Ahmed, a former country representative of the IUCN Bangladesh, said elephants were among protected animals under the Wildlife Act, adding that the forest department should investigate the repeated incidents of death of the wild elephants.

Eminent wildlife conservationist Reza Khan cited a study which showed that the elephants naturally browse on at least 50 species of plants and eat fruits of over a dozen trees.

Deforestation and changing patterns in forestry created a severe shortage of food for elephants and other animals.

He said many people had encroached on forest lands and occupied routes used by elephants. The illegal land occupiers sometimes use electrical fences and poison-laced food items to deter elephants raiding their crops or dwellings, the former IUCN member said, demanding punishment for the offenders.

“Rampaging wild elephants entering human settlements should be tranquillized and moved to remote areas where there are existing elephant populations,” Khan told the Dhaka Tribune. “To reduce human-elephant conflicts, the government must ensure sufficient supply of food and water inside the forest.”

When contacted, Md Jahidul Kabir, conservator of forests (wildlife and nature conservation circle), said they were going to undertake a special project in consultation with the IUCN.

Wildlife biologist Raihan said wild elephants played a significant role in protecting natural forests, adding: “The conservation of elephants should be a mandatory task to ensure their survivability.”

Dr Anisuzzaman Khan, biodiversity researcher and chief adviser to Isabela Foundation, said, “People all over the world keep a close eye on the state of tigers and elephants. Infrastructural development of a country becomes meaningless and the country suffers from an image deficit if tigers or elephants meet unnatural death.”

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Rohingya man killed in elephant attack

A Rohingya man was killed in an elephant attack in Majurchhara area of Kutupalong Rohingya camp in Ukhia upazila early Friday.

The deceased was identified as Yakub Ali, 45, son of Mahmud Ali.

A wild elephant entered the camp around 3 am and killed Yakub by using his turtle, said officer-in-charge of Ukhia Police Station M Abul Khayer quoting family members.

Earlier, 12 Rohingyas, including women and children, were killed in several elephant attacks in the Rohingya camp.

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Elephants and Rohingya Muslim refugees jostle for space in Bangladesh

An elephant gets rid of a fallen tree that created a highway block in Barishal, 75 miles south of Bangladesh’s capital Dhaka, Friday, Nov. 16, 2007.(Photograph: Pavel Rahman, AP)

Mohammed Alam and his younger circle of relatives had been taking part in their first excellent night time’s sleep in a very long time when the elephant attacked their tent.

He and his spouse, each Rohingya Muslims, had fled their village in Myanmar’s northern Rakhine state after infantrymen started burning homes. They’d trekked for 5 days to go the border and carve out house at the fringes of Bangladesh’s sprawling Kutupalong refugee camp. That night time, in October, they idea they had been protected. “We had been dozing so soundly,” Mohammed says. “I didn’t know anything else.”

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Wild elephant kills one in Rangamati

Rangamati: A man was trampled to death in a wild elephant attack in Sadar upazila of the district on Thursday morning.

Deceased Kina Chandra Chakma, 62, was the son of Boloram Chakma of Jibtoli union.

Kotwali Police Station source confirmed the death.

The source said a herd of wild elephants attacked Kina Chandra and trampled him to death in Jibtoli union when he was going Kaptai Lake for fishing.

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Elephant tramples man to death in Bandarban

BANDARBAN: A farmer was trampled to death by a wild elephant at Kaliganya in Tangkaboti union of Bandarban sadar upazila on Friday morning (Dec 1).

The deceased was identified as Md Kamaluddin, 52, hailed from the area.

Locals said some 3-4 wild elephants swoop out of the jungle while Kamaluddin was working on the field in the early morning and trampled him to death while he tried to flee out of fear.

Locals believed the elephant herd came out of the jungle in search for foods. 

Confirming the matter to Banglanews, Bandarban sadar police station officer-in-charge (OC) Md Golam Sarwar said, on information, police recovered the body from the spot.

However, elephant attack in several areas of Bandarban is not uncommon. Previously peoples have died as elephants suddenly came out of the wild into locality and attacked them.

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Settlements on trails deepen human-elephant conflicts

Ever expanding human settlement on trails is fragmenting and destroying the habitats of elephants, the already threatened species in the country, thus causing human-elephant casualties.

In the last couple of months, the tolls of human and elephant casualties increased amid a large part of elephant ranges being allocated as shelters to the Rohingyas fleeing persecution in Myanmar as well as brought under crop cultivation projects.

Department of Forests officials told New Age that at least 12 people were trampled to death by elephant herds and eight elephants were found dead in Cox’s Bazar, Sherpur, Bandarban and Moulavibazar this year.

Of the casualties, eight people were killed by elephants in September and October while five wild elephants were killed in the two months.

At least six Rohingyas, temporarily camped at forestlands at Kutupalang and Balukhali of Ukhia under Cox’s Bazar, were reportedly trampled by wild elephants in September and October so far.
Besides the areas, earlier designated for the Rohingya people at Kutupalang, forest officials said, the government allocated an additional 3,000 acres of forestlands at Ukhia, entirely on the elephant trails, for sheltering over six lakh newly-arrived Rohingyas.

Wildlife and Nature Conservation Circle conservator Jahidul Kabir observes that elephant is now the most endangered species as their habitats have been destroyed by human intervention.

He added that three elephants were killed during the recent landslides in the Chittagong division while another one was found dead with wounds besides the River Naf in Cox’s Bazar.

In the last two months, at least three people were trampled by wild elephants along the Bangladesh-India border in Sherpur as local people tried to resist stray elephants from destroying crops.

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Elephant electrocution along border on the rise

The incidents of wild elephants getting electrocuted is on the rise along Bangladesh's border since farmers have started installing generators and electric wires to protect their paddy fields from attacks by elephants coming from across the border.

Official sources say two wild elephants were found dead in the frontier area of Sreebardi upazila in Sherpur in this month (Oct 6 and 8). Both the elephants died after they came in contact with live wire placed on an Aman paddy field to protect it from animals. On August 13, another elephant was found dead at Haluahati village in Sreebardi upazila.

"The incidents of wild elephants falling victims to electrocution has recently marked a rise as farmers are increasingly installing generators and electric wires in their paddy fields to save their crops from elephants that come from Indian side," said Jahidul Kabir, forest conservator of Wildlife and Nature Conservation here, told UNB. He said three elephants were electrocuted recently in Sherpur while another was killed in 2015.

Asian elephants are said to be migratory animals as they can cover a considerable distance within a short period of time. In forests, elephant herds follow a well-defined migration route. The presence of traffic on roads, construction of steep retaining walls, barbed-wire fences, and the presence of human population along the corridor and routes can limit the migration of elephants that ultimately hinders their genetic diversity.Jahidul Kabir said when trans-boundary elephants enter Bangladesh's territory facing food crisis in India. "Once in Bangladesh territory, they find no suitable habitat here either."

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2 Rohingya girls killed in elephant attack in Bangladesh

Two girls were killed and three others injured in an elephant attack in a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Saturday.

The attack occurred late Friday in the Balukhali camp in the coastal Cox's Bazaar city, the UN migration agency in Bangladesh said on its Twitter account.

One of the girls aged five years died on the spot, while the other 13-year-old girl succumbed to her wounds at the hospital, the agency added.

Since Aug. 25, some 536,000 Rohingya have crossed from Myanmar's western state of Rakhine into Bangladesh, according to the UN.

The refugees are fleeing a military operation in which security forces and Buddhist mobs have killed men, women and children, looted homes and torched Rohingya villages.

According to Bangladeshi Foreign Minister Abul Hasan Mahmood Ali, around 3,000 Rohingya have been killed in the crackdown.

The Rohingya, described by the UN as the world's most persecuted people, have faced heightened fears of attack since dozens were killed in communal violence in 2012.

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Wild Elephants Attack Rohingya Camp, Kill 4

The refugees have described widespread and indiscriminate violence and arsons.
"Every minute counts given the fragile condition they're arriving in", said Mahecic.
Jens Laerke, spokesman of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), said that Rohingya in Rakhine now faced a "desperate choice whether to stay or go", not only due to the violence but also humanitarian needs. "They started firing on the village".

This new influx of refugees flee to join the over 536,000 Rohingya Muslims who have already escaped Myanmar to Bangladesh since August 25 when coordinated attacks were carried out by the Army on their settlements in Rakhine State.

"The military killed my brother".
"Twenty-one passengers were rescued, while many others are believed to have gone missing, " the officer said.

Hundreds of thousands of Rohingya have fled Myanmar since August 25, when the military launched a crackdown decried by the United Nations as "ethnic cleansing".

The Rohingya are fleeing violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state, where the United Nations has accused troops of waging an ethnic cleansing campaign against them.

Thousands of new Rohingya Muslims have arrived in Bangladesh on Monday after fleeing severe hunger in Myanmar.

The UNHCR said it was working with the Bangladesh government to complete a new transit centre in Kutupalong, the largest of the refugee camps housing the Rohingya.

District forest official Mohammed Ali Kabir said a herd of elephants entered the Balukhali camp in Ukhiya town early on Saturday and trampled tents where several refugees were sleeping.

The camp would be the largest in the world and has raised concerns about the risks of heavily concentrating such a large number of vulnerable people, such as the spread of disease.

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Wild elephant found dead in Sherpur

A wild elephant was found dead at Balijuri border of Sreebardi upazila on Sunday morning.

Md Rabiul Islam, Balijhuri range officer of the Forest Department, said locals spotted the elephant’s body in a paddy field in Balijuri border area at 8:30 am.

On information, the officials of the department went to the spot and made the viscera report.

It might be died after coming in contact with live electric wire placed in Aman paddy field to protect it from animals, added the official.

Later, the elephant was buried there, he added.

Earlier on October 6 and August 13, two wild elephants were found dead at Rangajan and Haluahati villages of Sreebardi upazila.

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Elephant kills and injures Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh

A woman and a Rohingya child were killed and a man and his wife were injured with fractures and deep wounds from wild elephant while sleeping near the Balu Khali camp in Bangladesh.

Arakan news agency reported that a woman and a child were killed after they were stepped over by elephants, while another man has broken his pelvis bone and spine also his wife was injured.

Because of the influx of large numbers of refugees in Bangladesh, many of them are now trying to find shelters, which leads them to move towards the forests, which is full of wild animals and puts them at risk of being attacked by elephants and other animals.

Wild animals has exacerbated the tragedy of the Rohingya Muslims after fleeing Arakan, Myanmar, and reaching Bangladesh where difficult living conditions, lack of safe drinking water and food, and the risk of epidemics due to poor infrastructure.

Eleven people have been trampled on in recent days, especially during the night when people are asleep. Two men were attacked on September 19th, and a man and a child were trampled on September 25, all the vicitms were killed.

Asian elephants are among the most dangerous in Bangladesh. Many of them travel in the Chittagong region of the southeast, where there are a large number of refugees.

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Elephant gives birth at Bangabandhu Safari Park

An elephant gave birth to a cub in Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Safari Park in Gazipur. The cub was born at 11:00pm on Sunday in the elephant aviary of the park. The mother elephant and the cub both are well.  The veterinary surgeon of the park said this is the first time that the wild elephant breeding is delivered in a closed environment. Nizam Uddin Chowdhury This is also a rare example for the country.

Surgeon Md. Nizam said, in different places of the country, in 2013, 6 wild elephants were brought to Safari Park and the pox was adopted. Of these two men and 4 females. After so many years on Sunday, elephants gave birth to the firstborn of elephants in the park. At present, the number of elephants in the Safari Park is 7. Earlier, no park or zoo has an elephant delivery information in the enclosed environment.

The birth weight of the breed was about 60 kg. An adult elephant usually weighs four thousand to five thousand kg. Elephants are capable of breeding in 18-20 years.  Their pregnancy time is 20-?2 months. Generally after four to five years a baby is born. There are breasts in the chest (two nipple) between the two legs in front of the elephant. The breed usually drinks the mother's milk for three to three years.

The average life expectancy of elephants is 100 years. Mother elephant with a baby is kept separate. The child is under the care of the mother. The child is walking around with the mother.Veterinary surgeon Md. Nizam Uddin Chowdhury said that the mother and the boy elephant are in her surveillance. There the tourists' travel was limited. Mother elephant is being fed every day with 20 kg of banana trees, 50 kg sweet pumpkin, 50 kg of sugarcane, 10 kg carrots, 3 kg of lemon and rice (rice).

After about four years the baby elephant started to eat natural foods. For the mother elephant not to suffer from malnutrition, she is being supplied with necessary food and medicines and kept under intensive scrutiny. Officer in charge of the park.  Shahabuddin said that the incident of elephant breeding in a zoo or a Safari park (Captivity) is a rare incident in the country. Both mother and herb are both healthy. But they have been kept in special care.

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