Myanmar military burned Rohingya villages, says Human Rights Watch

New York [USA], Dec. 13 (ANI): Human Rights Watch has claimed that the Myanmar military deliberately burned the houses of Rohingya, a Muslim minority in the Buddhist majority country. According to the HRW, satellite images could prove that villages in Myanmar's restive Rakhine State were deliberately burned to the ground, reports the CNN. The organization claims that the timing of the various incidents and their "spacial trends" offer evidence of a pattern that is "consistent with military operations and not random village acts of self-immolation." The east-to-west movement of buildings that were burned to the ground is consistent with a military sweep, according to HRW deputy director of Asia division Phil Robertson. "Basic common sense tells you that the military are responsible for this," he said. Human Rights Watch also released before and after satellite images of specific villages it said had been burned. The Myanmar Government has previously denied reports that the military was responsible for burning villages, placing the blame on attackers. (ANI)