Two Myanmar soldiers injured in clash with militants near Bangladesh border

A clash between Myanmar security forces and militants has left two soldiers injured on Bangladesh’s border with the country's Rakhine State, reports Reuters.

The incident, which follows a four-month security crackdown on Rohingya Muslims, put to doubt  Myanmar government’s claim of normalcy in the region.

The soldiers were injured in a five-minute clash on Friday with an armed group on the border with Bangladesh, Reuters quoted a statement from Myanmar State Counselor's Office released late on Saturday.

"The security forces protecting workers constructing the border fence between the Mile Post 56 and 57 in Buthidaung township were attacked by about 30 unidentified armed men in black uniforms positioned on hills on the Bangladeshi side," the statement said, adding the armed men withdrew after security forces returned fire.

The authorities were still gathering information on casualties of the armed group.

The Bangladesh Border Guard (BGB), however, said they were not aware of any such clash.

“We have not received any such news. The BGB has strict surveillance on the border. Nothing like this has been reported,” Colonel Raqibul Islam, Cox’s Bazar BGB Sector Commander, told bdnews24.com on Sunday.

The Reuters report said that the Myanmar state counselor's office and military did not immediately respond to their request for comments.

After the death of nine policemen in separate attacks on security posts near the Bangladesh border on Oct 9 last year, the country launched a crackdown in the Rohingya-majority northern Rakhine region.

Almost 69,000 Muslim Rohingyas crossed over into Bangladesh fearing persecution, according to estimates by the United Nations.

The UN has said the security crackdown may amount to crimes against humanity and possibly ethnic cleansing.