Two mortar shells fired from Myanmar land in Bangladesh

Authorities believe the shells were fired during a confrontation between the Myanmar military and a rebel group

Two mortar shells fired from Myanmar have landed in Bangladesh near the border in Bandarban, causing panic among residents.

Police said the shells fell close to a mosque half a kilometre from the Tumbru border of Ghumdhum, Naikhyangchhari around 2:30 pm on Monday.

Authorities believe the shells were fired during a confrontation between the Myanmar Border Police and a rebel group.

The shells caused no damage or casualties, said Tariqul Islam, the district’s superintendent of police.

One of the shells landed next to Uttorpara Jame Mosque and the other 200 metres away from the mosque, according to him.

“It appeared we were not the target of the shelling. Most probably they were fired during fighting between the Myanmar Border Police and a rebel group,” he said.

Lieutenant Colonel Faizur Rahman, a director of Border Guard Bangladesh, said they were gathering information on the incident.

Zahangir Aziz, chairman of the local union council, said they have been hearing sounds of gunshots inside Myanmar for two weeks.

“Although the shells haven’t caused any damage, they’ve caused panic among the locals,” he said.