Kuala lumpur: Police have confirmed that no arrests were made on a group of Rohingya refugees who gathered outside the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) office here recently. Kuala Lumpur police chief Datuk Fadil Marsus stated that the group was checked for documentation purposes only.

According to BERNAMA News Agency, the refugees were not detained or arrested. They were only checked, transferred to the Kuala Lumpur contingent headquarters for documentation purposes, and subsequently released. This clarification was issued to counter an international media report claiming that the group was arrested upon arriving in the capital by bus after being evicted from their settlement in Penang.

On July 29, Chief Fadil mentioned that the group would be relocated in stages to three different states, as coordinated by non-governmental organizations and UNHCR. This move is part of a broader effort to manage the refugee population in Malaysia effectively.

In a related development, Prime Minister Datuk Seri Anwar Ibrahim announced that the Myanmar government has agreed to accept approximately 5,000 Rohingya refugees currently residing in Malaysia. This agreement was reached through negotiation and the strengthening of bilateral ties between the two countries.

As of the end of February, there are about 126,000 Rohingya refugees reportedly registered with UNHCR in Malaysia, highlighting the ongoing challenges and humanitarian efforts associated with the refugee situation in the region.