Red cross urges Myanmar to give more access to conflict zones

The International Committee of the Red Cross has called on Myanmar to give aid workers access to Rohingya Muslims caught up in conflicts in the northwestern state of Rakhine.

The organization said the ICRC workers have been blocked from the areas that the Buddhist extremist forces control. The rights group added that the government only recently allowed aid workers to visit the affected areas, under the condition that they are accompanied by officials. For the past few years Myanmar has launched a heavy-handed crackdown on the Rohingya Muslims. Security forces are accused of committing mass killings and gang rapes in the Rohingya-populated areas. The UN which has described Rohingya Muslims as one of the world’s most persecuted minorities, has called for an inquiry into the atrocities.