US declares Myanmar military oppression of Rohingya 'genocide'

Antony Blinken formally declared that the Myanmar military's attacks on the Rohingya in 2016 and 2017 were 'genocide'

Rohingya refugees from Myanmar's Rakhine state wait for aid at Kutupalong refugee camp in the Bangladeshi town of Teknaf. Credit: AFP File Photo

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken formally declared Monday that the Myanmar military's attacks on the Rohingya in 2016 and 2017 were "genocide", saying there was "clear intent" to destroy the Muslim minority.

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"I have determined that members of the Burmese military committed genocide and crimes against humanity against Rohingya," Blinken said.

The evidence shows "a clear intent behind these mass atrocities -- the intent to destroy Rohingya, in whole or in part," he said at the US Holocaust Memorial Museum.

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