By Bhanu Ranjan Chakraborty
DHAKA: Nine-year old girl Huzaifa Afnan, who was struck by a stray bullet fired from Myanmar bordering area on January 11, died Saturday (7 February) morning at a hospital in Dhaka.
Huzaifa breathed her last 27 days after being hit by a stray bullet at Teknaf border about 500 KM away from Dhaka. She was undergoing treatment at the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital in the capital Dhaka. Local sources said that Huzaifa was injured in the shooting from the Myanmar border on January 11.
On that day, during the clash between Myanmar’s Arakan Army and Rohingya armed groups near the Teknaf border of Cox’s Bazar, nine-year-old Huzaifa was hit by a stray bullet. She is the daughter of Jasim Uddin, a resident of Teknaf’s Teschibridge village.
Immediately after the incident, local residents rescued the child and admitted her to the Teknaf Health Complex and later admitted to the ICU of Chattogram Medical College Hospital (CMCH) that evening.
Although doctors performed surgery, the bullet was lodged in such a sensitive part of her head that it could not be removed. As her condition deteriorated, Huzaifa was transferred to the National Institute of Neurosciences and Hospital in capital Dhaka on 13 January for advanced treatment.
Doctors at the hospital said that Huzaifa had been on life support for a long time. Her heart was not working until recently. She was later declared dead on Saturday (7 February) morning.
Burial
Meanwhile, the body of child Huzaifa Afnan was buried at around 11 am on Sunday (February 8) at the family graveyard in Teknaf village after the funeral. Leaders and activists of various political and social organizations of Ukhia-Teknaf and several hundred people of the area participated in the funeral.
After the funeral, local residents told the media that the surveillance of the Border Guard Force needs to be strengthened so that no more innocent lives are lost in the border area. At the same time, they demanded effective steps from the government to stop the activities of Rohingya terrorists in the border area.
Mourning
Meanwhile, local residents had been gathering at the cemetery since Sunday morning to take a look at Huzaifa’s body. Relatives and neighbors present at the house were moved to tears by the heartbreaking cries of the parents. The relatives are still mourning at home. Huzaifa Afnan was a third-grade student of a local school and the eldest child of the family.
Afnan’s father Jasim Uddin told the media, “Until the last moment, I counted the days hoping to get my daughter back alive. But that hope was not fulfilled. My innocent daughter had no crime, no enemies. She just wanted to live, wanted a normal life. We cannot accept this death in any way.”
Meanwhile, local residents told the media, Huzaifa was not only a child of her family, but of the entire Teschibriz area. The death of ordinary people in this way due to firing from the border is very sad. We are spending our days in fear in the border area. We want security. In separate messages, local leaders expressed deep sorrow and condolences to Huzaifa’s family.
Turbulent border
According to various sources, airstrikes, drone strikes, mortar shells and bomb explosions have increased in Myanmar’s Rakhine State recently, and the government junta has intensified airstrikes on the positions of the armed group Arakan Army (AA) in the area around Maungdaw Township.
At the same time, the border situation has become more complicated due to clashes between various armed groups, and the shelling on the other side is affecting the border towns of Bangladesh. Houses are shaking due to the sound of shelling in different areas of Teknaf, and bullets are also falling on people’s homes and the Naf River. Huzaifa’s death has raised new concerns about the safety of ordinary people on the border.
