<a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/un-security-council-urges-myanmar-to-stop-excessive-military-force-23625" target="_blank">The scale of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh is &quot;immense&quot; </a>and while the host nation has been &quot;generous&quot; in its efforts, the situation requires a lot more work, a top US official who recently visited Bangladesh has said.

&quot;What we saw in the camps was shocking. The scale of the refugee crisis is immense,&quot; Simon Henshaw, the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration told reporters at a news conference yesterday.

Henshaw led a US delegation to Bangladesh, from October 29 to November 4, during which the team also visited the refugee camps near Cox&#39;s Bazar.

&quot;The conditions are tough. People are suffering. Many refugees told us, through tears, accounts of seeing their villages burned, their relatives killed in front of them,&quot; said Henshaw.

&quot;It was tough to take. Some recall being shot as they fled,&quot; he said.

Despite the trauma, many expressed a strong desire to return to their homes in Burma, provided their safety, security, and rights could be guaranteed, Henshaw said.

Responding to a question, Henshaw said he saw evidence of atrocities during the visit to these camps.

&quot;I&#39;m not an expert, but what I saw was shocking. I saw evidence of atrocities,&quot; he said.

Asked if the atrocities rose up to the level of ethnic cleansing, Henshaw was non-committal, saying the State Department would review his reports and that of the others to make any such determination.

Despite the conditions in the relief camps, Henshaw praised Bangladesh&#39;s government, its people, and other organisations that are supporting the refugees.

&quot;However, more is needed. The US remains committed to addressing the needs of those impacted by the crisis, and calls on others, including in the region, to join us in our response,&quot; Henshaw said.

According to Henshaw, the Burmese government &quot;appears to be committed&quot; to start a repatriation programme which is in its early stages.

&quot;It&#39;s very important to us that the programme not only creates safe conditions so that refugees will want to return voluntarily, but also assure that refugees go back to their villages and land, that their houses be restored in the areas where the villages were burned, and that political reconciliation take place,&quot; he said.

State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert, who accompanied Henshaw during the visit to Bangladesh, applauded the government of Bangladesh for taking &quot;an extraordinary step to open its heart and doors&quot; for their neighbors in distress.

&quot;They&#39;ve opened their hearts; they&#39;ve opened their wallets. Imagine more than 600,000 to cross their borders, putting them in camps. It&#39;s not where these people want to be of course in their camps; they&#39;d rather be home. But at least they&#39;re safe for now,&quot; she said.

More than 600,000 people from the Muslim minority group have fled violence in Myanmar&#39;s northern Rakhine state since August, according to UN estimates.

Bangladesh accused Myanmar of spearheading a violent depopulation campaign to eliminate Rohingyas by branding them as so-called &quot;Islamist terrorists&quot;

Despite the conditions in the relief camps, Henshaw praised Bangladesh's government, its people, and other organisations that are supporting the refugees

The scale of Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh is "immense" and while the host nation has been "generous" in its efforts, the situation requires a lot more work, a top US official who recently visited Bangladesh has said. "What we saw in the camps was shocking. The scale of the refugee crisis is immense," Simon Henshaw, the Acting Assistant Secretary of State for Population, Refugees, and Migration told reporters at a news conference yesterday. Henshaw led a US delegation to Bangladesh, from October 29 to November 4, during which the team also visited the refugee camps near Cox's Bazar. "The conditions are tough. People are suffering. Many refugees told us, through tears, accounts of seeing their villages burned, their relatives killed in front of them," said Henshaw. "It was tough to take. Some recall being shot as they fled," he said. Despite the trauma, many expressed a strong desire to return to their homes in Burma, provided their safety, security, and rights could be guaranteed, Henshaw said. Responding to a question, Henshaw said he saw evidence of atrocities during the visit to these camps. "I'm not an expert, but what I saw was shocking. I saw evidence of atrocities," he said. Asked if the atrocities rose up to the level of ethnic cleansing, Henshaw was non-committal, saying the State Department would review his reports and that of the others to make any such determination. Despite the conditions in the relief camps, Henshaw praised Bangladesh's government, its people, and other organisations that are supporting the refugees. "However, more is needed. The US remains committed to addressing the needs of those impacted by the crisis, and calls on others, including in the region, to join us in our response," Henshaw said. According to Henshaw, the Burmese government "appears to be committed" to start a repatriation programme which is in its early stages. "It's very important to us that the programme not only creates safe conditions so that refugees will want to return voluntarily, but also assure that refugees go back to their villages and land, that their houses be restored in the areas where the villages were burned, and that political reconciliation take place," he said. State Department Spokesperson Heather Nauert, who accompanied Henshaw during the visit to Bangladesh, applauded the government of Bangladesh for taking "an extraordinary step to open its heart and doors" for their neighbors in distress. "They've opened their hearts; they've opened their wallets. Imagine more than 600,000 to cross their borders, putting them in camps. It's not where these people want to be of course in their camps; they'd rather be home. But at least they're safe for now," she said. More than 600,000 people from the Muslim minority group have fled violence in Myanmar's northern Rakhine state since August, according to UN estimates. Bangladesh accused Myanmar of spearheading a violent depopulation campaign to eliminate Rohingyas by branding them as so-called "Islamist terrorists"

'Tough conditions for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh': US official

The US government will constantly monitor its sanctions regime to respond to violence in Myanmar&#39;s Rakhine state that has sent hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees across the border to Bangladesh, a senior US official said on Saturday.

&quot;We are constantly evaluating the situation,&quot; Simon Henshaw, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, told reporters at a news briefing in Dhaka after visiting camps in Cox&#39;s Bazar where hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees are sheltering.

&quot;Congress has given us a number of tools we can use,&quot; he said, noting disturbing reports of atrocities in Rakhine state.

&quot;We call for a full investigation of these reports, we call for those who committed (the atrocities) to be held accountable,&quot; he said.

&quot;It is incredible that only within two months more than 600,000 refugees have taken shelter in a country.&quot;

A seven-member delegation led by Henshaw visited Myanmar from October 29 before traveling to Bangladesh on Wednesday. It went to Cox&#39;s Bazar on Thursday.

&quot;During our meetings with Myanmar government officials, we told them that it is their responsibility to return a secure and stable situation in Rakhine state. It is also their responsibility to investigate the reports of atrocities.&quot;

The delegation also asked Myanmar to allow Rohingya people back to their land and to rehabilitate the villages that were burned. He said they had been shocked by Rohingya accounts of atrocities, murder, and sexual assaults.

&quot;The delegation called on the Myanmar government to allow access to the press and international organizations so they could see the situation on the ground,&quot; he said.

US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the issue has been taken to the highest level of authority in the US government.

&quot;The statements related to the situation in Myanmar have been issued from the White House and also from the State Department.&quot;

She said the delegation would update US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson before his visit to Myanmar on Nov. 15.

Some 2,500 Rohingya refugees crossed into Bangladesh on Friday through two border crossings, a senior security official said on Saturday.

&quot;Those refugees are already being sent to different camps under the supervision of Bangladesh Army,&quot; Major Mohammad Iqbal, Deputy Commanding Officer of Bangladesh Border Guard of Cox&#39;s Bazar district told Reuters.

"Congress has given us a number of tools we can use," the official said, noting disturbing reports of atrocities in Rakhine state.

The US government will constantly monitor its sanctions regime to respond to violence in Myanmar's Rakhine state that has sent hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslim refugees across the border to Bangladesh, a senior US official said on Saturday. "We are constantly evaluating the situation," Simon Henshaw, Acting Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration, told reporters at a news briefing in Dhaka after visiting camps in Cox's Bazar where hundreds of thousands of Rohingya refugees are sheltering. "Congress has given us a number of tools we can use," he said, noting disturbing reports of atrocities in Rakhine state. "We call for a full investigation of these reports, we call for those who committed (the atrocities) to be held accountable," he said. "It is incredible that only within two months more than 600,000 refugees have taken shelter in a country." A seven-member delegation led by Henshaw visited Myanmar from October 29 before traveling to Bangladesh on Wednesday. It went to Cox's Bazar on Thursday. "During our meetings with Myanmar government officials, we told them that it is their responsibility to return a secure and stable situation in Rakhine state. It is also their responsibility to investigate the reports of atrocities." The delegation also asked Myanmar to allow Rohingya people back to their land and to rehabilitate the villages that were burned. He said they had been shocked by Rohingya accounts of atrocities, murder, and sexual assaults. "The delegation called on the Myanmar government to allow access to the press and international organizations so they could see the situation on the ground," he said. US State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said the issue has been taken to the highest level of authority in the US government. "The statements related to the situation in Myanmar have been issued from the White House and also from the State Department." She said the delegation would update US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson before his visit to Myanmar on Nov. 15. Some 2,500 Rohingya refugees crossed into Bangladesh on Friday through two border crossings, a senior security official said on Saturday. "Those refugees are already being sent to different camps under the supervision of Bangladesh Army," Major Mohammad Iqbal, Deputy Commanding Officer of Bangladesh Border Guard of Cox's Bazar district told Reuters.

Constantly monitoring sanctions regime on Myanmar situation: US

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'Tough conditions for Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh': US official

Constantly monitoring sanctions regime on Myanmar situation: US