Meanwhile, the Turkish and Bangladeshi Red Crescent organizations have signed a Memorandum of Understanding to send aid to Bangladesh, where Arakan Muslims have been forced to seek shelter.

The aid campaign for Muslims being forced to desert their homes in Myanmar's Arakan region started by Turkey's Directorate of Religious Affairs is now beginning to take flight. The Directorate of Religious Affairs will be making it possible for the traditional charity and alms offered during the Ramadan holiday to be delivered as aid to the Arakan Muslims. The aid campaign kicked off on Friday, July 27th, during the 31st Turkish Book and Culture Fair held in the courtyard of the Kocatepe Mosque and attended by Deputy Prime Minister Bekir Bozdağ, Minister of Culture and Tourism Ertuğrul Günay and head of the Religious Affairs Directorate Prof. Dr. Mehmet Görmez. Since then, the teams sent by the Religious Affairs Directorate have reached the region to deliver aid.

Those who want to participate in the campaign by contributing 5 TL, can do so by sending an SMS message that reads 'ARAKAN' to 5601 for Turkcell, Avea and Vodafone operators. Donations can also be made on www.diyanetvakfi.org.tr.

THE RED CRESCENT REACHES BANGLADESH

Turkey's Red Crescent signed a cooperation protocol, the Memorandum of Understanding, with the Bangladesh Red Crescent in order to provide aid to the Rohingya Muslims whom are being forcibly displaced from Arakan to Bangladesh. President of the Turkish Red Crescent Ahmet Lütfi Akar was on hand in Bangladesh in order to sign the memorandum along with his Bangladeshi counterpart M.S. Akbar. Explaining that the population in Bangladesh is already overcrowded, Akbar stated, "We are therefore unable to properly assist the Rohingya Muslims. The Bangladeshi public needs outside help themselves."