Myanmar: No need for human rights inquiry

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RAKHINE, Myanmar, Aug. 16 (UPI) -- There is no need for an investigation into violence between Burmese Buddhist and Muslim ethnic groups, Myanmar's Human Rights Commission says.

The Organization of Islamic Cooperation said it will ask the United Nations Security Council to look into the government's handling of clashes in Rakhine State in Myanmar, formerly known as Burma, the Voice of America reported Thursday.

The root of the problem lies in the government's failure to recognize the Rohingya as citizens, said Jim Della-Giacoma, an analyst for International Crisis Group, refering to an ethnic group of 800,000 Muslims in Myanmar regarded by the United Nations as among the most persecuted people in the world.

A United Nations report released Thursday said the number of people displaced by the fighting in Rahkine has exceeded 68,500 and is rising.