U.N., U.S. condemn killing of Rohingya refugee leader in Bangladesh

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The United Nations and United States on Thursday spoke out over the killing of Rohingya refugee leader Mohib Ullah and called on Bangladeshi authorities to investigate his shooting.

Mohib Ullah, who was in his late 40s, was killed by unknown gunmen in a camp in Cox’s Bazar on Wednesday night. He led one of the largest of several community groups to emerge since more than 730,000 Rohingya Muslims fled Myanmar after a military crackdown in August 2017.

“The U.N. urges the Bangladeshi authorities to undertake an investigation and to hold those responsible to account,” U.N. spokesperson Stephanie Tremblay told a press briefing in New York on Thursday.

U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he was “saddened and disturbed” by Mohib Ullah’s murder, calling him “a brave and fierce advocate for the human rights of Rohingya Muslims around the world.”

“We urge a full and transparent investigation into his death with the goal of holding the perpetrators of this heinous crime accountable,” Blinken said in a statement.

(Reporting by Simon Lewis;Editing by Sandra Maler)