#  Caught in Crossfire: Rohingya Children and the Crisis in Myanmar 

 





October 30, 2017

 

 

Nearly half a million Rohingya people have fled their homes in the western Rakhine state of Myanmar since August, following a brutal military crackdown involving mass organized executions, rapes, and the burning of more than 200 villages. In the wake of the mass displacement, United Nations’ High Commissioner on Human Rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, characterized the military campaign as a ["textbook example" of ethnic cleansing](https://www.theguardian.com/world/2017/sep/11/un-myanmars-treatment-of-rohingya-textbook-example-of-ethnic-cleansing), and called on leaders in Myanmar to intervene on behalf of the Rohingya. While many news stories have highlighted the [atrocities experienced on the ground](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/10/11/world/asia/rohingya-myanmar-atrocities.html), less attention has been paid to the unique challenges facing Rohingya children caught in the crossfire.

[More than half of the Rohingya](https://www.nytimes.com/2017/09/15/world/asia/myanmar-rohingya-children.html) who have made their way to refugee camps in Bangladesh are children, many separated from their families and arriving unaccompanied. In conflict settings, unaccompanied children face considerable risks, including human trafficking and sexual abuse. While the need for health care, basic nutritional supplementation, and psychological counseling mirrors broader needs among this vulnerable community, child-friendly services are limited in the face of such high demands. To learn more about the challenges facing displaced children and opportunities for action, explore [*Stolen Childhoods*](http://repository.gheli.harvard.edu/repository/11634/), a recent report from Save the Children that ranks 172 countries based on conditions that succeed or fail to protect children.



 

 

 



 

 

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