Turkey to provide university scholarships to 53 Rohingya Muslim students

The Turkish Deputy Prime Minister, Hakan Cavusoglu, has announced that the country will provide university scholarship to 53 Rohingya Muslim students.

The students from Myanmar's troubled western Rakhine state will study communication, law, politics and human rights at Turkish universities, the Anadolu Agency news quoted Cavusoglu, as saying.

He further said that the Rohingya students are currently studying in Turkish universities.

Cavusoglu reaffirmed Turkey's support to Rohingya Muslims by providing them food and health facilities.

"We will set up mobile health clinics [in the refugee camps]," he said.

Nearly half a million Rohingyas have fled to Bangladesh due to violence in the Rakhine state that has claimed lives of at least more than 100 people and displaced several others.

Bangladesh is currently sheltering 5,07,000 Rohingya refugees in the country.

The Myanmar troops launched a crackdown in the Rakhine state in response to attacks on three border posts last year that killed nine police officers, since then many Rohingya Muslims have tried to move into Bangladesh illegally.

The Rohingyas are not recognised by Myanmar as its citizens and are called Bengali by them.