An Arakanese Rohingya was slashed to death with a sword on the night of October 4, while searching for his son in a hill-tribe village, according to a local village official.

Amir Husson (72) from Kwanthipin village had gone to Thet (Muro) village to in search of his son, Hamid Husson, who had left early in the morning and had not returned home, the village official  said.

Amir’s body was discovered with seven sword cuts by villagers after family members had alerted local residents of his disappearance.

“The old man, Amir Husson, was a good and friendly person. I don’t know why he was killed near Thet (Muro) village,” said a neighbour from Kwanthipin village.

Village elders said they had informed the authorities in the Burmese border security force (Nasaka) of the death in order to get permission to bury Amir, but Nasaka ordered the body to be taken to Maungdaw hospital’s morgue for an autopsy, said a relative of the deceased.

The relative said that a case had been started concerning the death and that the body was at the Maungdaw hospital morgue, but no formal inquiries into the death had yet been made.

“If  the body was found near an Arakanese Rohingya village, authorities would arrest or harass all the surrounding villagers. But since the body that was found was of an Arakanese Rohingya, authorities seem willing to overlook the matter,” said a student from Maungdaw.