GENEVA (Reuters) - The United Nations refugee agency said on Tuesday that conditions in Myanmar’s Rakhine state were “not yet conducive for returns”, after Bangladesh and Myanmar agreed to start repatriation of hundreds of thousands of Muslim Rohingya by mid-November.
“It is critical that returns are not rushed or premature,” UNHCR spokesman Andrej Mahecic told Reuters, noting that any returns must also be voluntary. “We would advise against imposing any timetable or target figures for repatriation.”
Reporting by Stephanie Nebehay; editing by Tom Miles
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