On 8 February 2026, a coordinated security operation was conducted by joint forces led by the Bangladesh Army in Ukhiya upazila of Cox’s Bazar district, targeting Rohingya refugees found living outside the designated Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMN) camps, particularly in the Palongkhali Union and Balukhali areas. During the operation, over 600 Rohingya individuals were detained for residing outside the officially recognized camp boundaries in apparent violation of existing regulations governing refugee settlement. The detainees were found living in makeshift shelters or under the temporary protection of Bangladeshi hosts in the surrounding areas.
Bangladesh does not have a specific refugee law and is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention. Rohingya refugees are officially classified as Forcibly Displaced Myanmar Nationals (FDMNs) and are managed under existing national laws and administrative directives. Their residence and movement are regulated primarily through the Foreigners Act, 1946, the Registration of Foreigners Act, 1939, and executive orders issued since 2017 that designate specific camps in Ukhiya and Teknaf as authorized places of residence. Under this framework, Rohingyas living outside designated camps without permission are considered to be residing without authorization, enabling authorities to conduct verification, detention, and relocation to camps under administrative powers.
According to the Officer-in-Charge of Ukhiya Police Station, Nur Ahmed, the detained Rohingyas had been warned in the days leading up to the operation to return to their assigned camp areas ahead of the 13th national parliamentary election of Bangladesh, scheduled for 12 February 2026, “We have urged all Rohingyas to return to camps ahead of the elections. We feared that many would engage in criminal activities, including creating chaos during the forthcoming national elections.” He noted that the identification of the detainees’ registration status with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the Office of the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner (RRRC) is yet to be completed.
The RRRC, Mohammed Mizanur Rahman, said that a significantly larger number of Rohingya, estimated at around 1,000 individuals, were believed to be living in the wider Palongkhali area, either with local hosts or in unauthorized dwellings on forest land, sometimes facilitated by informal payments to officials. These movements outside the camps reflect challenges in managing the large Rohingya population, which Bangladesh hosts along with UN partners. Commissioner Mizanur added that although biometric registrations have been done for many refugees, the state has been unable to provide camp accommodation for all newly arrived or unregistered refugees due to space and logistical constraints. “In the past two and a half years, over 1.5 lakh Rohingyas entered into Bangladesh from Myanmar. Although we have collected biometric data by scanning their irises, but we could not provide homes for all of them.”
As part of the same broader operation, enforcement teams also identified and penalized local landlords who had rented houses to Rohingya families outside the camps. According to Executive Magistrate Manjur Bin Afnan, who conducted a mobile court under the district administration, these landlords were fined a total of Tk 157,000 for their role in facilitating unauthorized rentals and were warned to refrain from such arrangements in the future. The punished house owners are:
· Abdur Rashid Rahman – 7 days imprisonment
· Shahina Akter – Fine of 10,000 taka
· Saju Begum – Fine of 10,000 taka
· Md. Harun – Fine of 7,000 taka
· Selina Akter – Fine of 5,000 taka
· Md. Hamidul – Fine of 5,000 taka
· Md. Syed Alam – Fine of 20,000 taka
· Md. Azizur Rahman – 7 days imprisonment
· Md. Nur Hossain – Fine of 30,000 taka
· Anwarul Alam – Fine of 20,000 taka
· Nurul Amin – Fine of 50,000 taka
· Md. Abdul Rashid – 30 days imprisonment
· Md. Manjur Alam – 20 days imprisonment
After initial detention and verification of their identity and situation, the Rohingya individuals were processed and returned to their respective camps through established administrative channels and the RRRC.
Several Rohingyas who were detained said they had gone outside the camps in search of work. Nur Kamal, a Rohingya resident, said, “We went outside the camp for work. Now we have been sent back. The authorities told us to stay inside the camp.” Another detainee, Abdul Hakim, also known as Bulu, said they were informed that they were not authorized to stay outside the camp: “We were outside the camp, which is not allowed. The administration explained the matter and sent us back.” Authorities further asserted that they will continue detaining people and taking legal action against anyone breaking the rules about living outside the camps. Residents remarked that the arrests have made life more uncertain for Rohingya families who depend on informal work outside the camps, while officials reaffirmed that these actions are necessary for ensuring security and rule of law.
Authorities have carried out several such operations in recent weeks across Cox’s Bazar and Chattogram to manage Rohingyas residing outside officially designated camps. On 5 February, security forces in Chandanaish upazila detained over 300 Rohingya individuals, including 176 men, 86 women, and 86 children, for verification before being sent back to camps via the RRRC. Authorities said that these measures are part of ongoing efforts to maintain camp regulations and security ahead of the upcoming national parliamentary election.
Indeed, security concerns surrounding the parliamentary elections have been on the minds of law enforcement officials and the armed forces by virtue of their authorization under magistracy. Since mid-2024, Bangladesh has seen the countrywide proliferation of illicit arms. Near-monthly drives targeting arms traffickers have been carried out, particularly in border regions such as Teknaf and Bandarban. This, and consistent upscaling of operations by Rohingya militant groups and their criminal proxies have both led to a concering security situation previously covered by Bangladesh Defence Journal.
Social media intelligence (SOCINT) and open-source intelligence (OSINT) efforts suggest a growing divide between Rohingya militant groups, with the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (ARSA), Arakan Rohingya Army (ARA), and Rohingya Islami Mahaz (RIM) all poised against the Rohingya Solidarity Organzation (RSO). The roots of this recent spat appear to lie in a January 2026 battle between a coalition force of Rohingyas and the Arakan Army not far from the Bangladeshi border, which resulted in a decisive victory for the Arakan Army.
RSO fighters have been blamed for not assuming positions as previously agreed upon, an accusation echoed by a member of the ARA in the video below. Prior to the formalization of the ‘Four Brotherhood Alliance’, the aforementioned militant groups, particularly ARSA and RSO, had accumulated years of experience fighting one another for control of smuggling routes. News reports since 2024 suggest that the conflicts had been largely outsourced to affiliated bandit groups operating as ARSA and ARA had operated in the past.
The January 2026 battle also resulted in a stray round injuring a Bengali child, leading to notable unrest expressed by Bengali residents who urged local law enforcement to take urgent measures to remove Rohingya refugees from the environs. According to Dhaka Tribune and other news outlets, the aforementioned child passed away while under medical care on the 7th of February, 2026. Observers may judge that a real possibility of inter-ethnic riots in Teknaf existed in the lead up to the elections.
Apart from that, observers may also consider the possibility of Rohingyas living outside the camps being hired by political actors as muscle, which the arrests have pre-empted.
Verification Note: This report is based on publicly available news sources, official statements, and credible analyses as of 9th February 2026. Information from unreliable, exaggerated, or unverified sources has been excluded to ensure accuracy and objectivity.
Afiya Ibnath Ayshi is a Security and Strategic Reporting Fellow at Bangladesh Defence Journal. She covers defence, foreign affairs, and humanitarian issues, focusing on how regional and global developments influence Bangladesh’s security and diplomacy. A graduate in English from the University of Dhaka, she brings a research-based and balanced approach to her work.