The Burmese government’s inquiry into allegations of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing during a crackdown against the Rohingya Muslim minority last year has concluded no such crimes happened.

Rohingya militants killed nine border guards in October, sparking a response in which the army was accused of raping Rohingya women, shooting villagers on sight and burning down homes, sending an estimated 75,000 people fleeing to Bangladesh.

A UN report in February said security forces instigated a campaign which “very likely” amounted to crimes against humanity and possibly ethnic cleansing. This led to the establishment of a UN probe which is being blocked by Burma.

The Burmese inquiry accused the UN of making exaggerated claims in its report.

Aung San Suu Kyi pushes back against criticism of handling of Rohingya abuses

The country’s own 13-member investigation team – led by former head of military intelligence and now Vice President, Myint Swe – has been dismissed by human rights monitors as lacking independence to produce a credible report.

Speaking at the release of the Rakhine Investigative Commission’s final report, Vice President Myint Swe – a former general – told reporters on Sunday that “there is no evidence of crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing as the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights claimed”.

He added that “some people from abroad have fabricated news claiming genocide had occurred, but we haven’t found any evidence”.

He also denied charges that there had been gang rapes by the military as it swept through Rohingya villages in a security clearance operation. The army was reacting to deadly attacks against border police posts by a previously unknown insurgent group in October 2016 in the Maungdaw area of Rakhine.

Rohingya mothers face persecution Show all 10 1 /10 Rohingya mothers face persecution Rohingya mothers face persecution Ramida Begum holds her 10-day-old daughter in their shelter in Kutupalang, an unregistered refugee camp in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh. 'The military caught my husband and burnt our house down a week before I left Myanmar. Since then I don't know whether my husband is dead or alive' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Minara Begum sits inside the shelter, cradling her one-month-old son Ayub. Minara fled to Bangladesh from Nasha Phuru village in Myanmar with her husband and mother-in-law. 'My child doesn't get enough breast milk as I don't eat enough nutritious food. I have to buy milk powder from local market though it's not very good for my son' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Amina, pictured with her 16-day-old daughter Sumaiyin, is in a refugee camp Balukhali that neighbours Ramida and Minara's. 'One and a half months ago the military came to our village and kept firing their guns. I ran away with my neighbours to save our lives. You see us alive here only because the God was so kind. They caught my uncle and my younger brother and we don't know whether they are dead or alive' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Fatema sits beside her one-day-old daughter Aasma in Kutupalang. Fatema fled to Bangladesh from Jambuinna village in Myanmar two months ago after her house was burnt down by the military. She crossed Naf River by boat during the night. 'Our situation is better than many other refugees as my husband Mohammad Alom works here as a day labourer. Many of the new refugees have no work here, so they have to rely on relief' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Jamalida cradles her two-month-old daughter Shahida. Jamalida came to Bangladesh with her husband from Nasha Phuru village in Myanmar Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Rehana Begum lays her one-day-old daughter in front of her inside their tarpaulin shelter. Rehana fled her village of Jambuinna in Myanmar three months ago. 'We were in our home and suddenly the military came to our village and started shooting. When we heard the sound of gun shots we immediately went to our relatives. We walked for four hours without any food and water to reach the border at 1 a.m. We paid 25,000 Myanmar kyat (£14) to a broker to cross.' Intercepted by Bangladesh border guards, Rehana's family narrowly escaped being sent home. 'They wanted to send us back, but then we heard gunshots from the Myanmar side and the guards released us, saying, "Stay in Bangladesh and save your lives"' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Noor Begum sits next to her one-day-old daughter Sumaiya as she stares into the camera. Noor came to the camp one-and-a-half months ago from Nagpura village with her husband Jahangir Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Rajuma Begum observes her one-month-old son Raihan. 'I fled to Bangladesh because of fear, because I needed to save my children. I was pregnant and suffering from fever while crossing the border. I also have an 11-month-old boy, so it was very difficult to reach the border from our village Wabek in Myanmar. I had to rest frequently. After six hours of horrible walking we finally reached the border at 2am and crossed after paying a broker' Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution Eighteen-year-old Asmot Ara rests her newly born daughter on her lap. Asmot said she came to the camp one month ago with neighbours from Nagpura village. In Myanmar her father-in-law was killed and their home burnt down by the Myanmar military Reuters Rohingya mothers face persecution As Marijaan holds her 25-day-old daughter Noor Habi, her son peers over her shoulder. Marijaan fled to Bangladesh from Khyeri Prang village in Myanmar one month ago after her house was burnt down by the Myanmar military. 'I reached the border at night and crossed by the boat. I paid the boatman to cross the Naf River' Reuters

The panel said that the report did not take into consideration “violent acts” committed by the insurgents, instead focusing on the activities of the security forces.

Rights groups have previously expressed their doubts over the commission’s work, saying it lacked outside experts, had poor research methodologies and lacked credibility because it was not independent.

Women and girls have accused soldiers and police officers of rape and sexual assault during months of violence between Muslims and Buddhists in Burma (AFP/Getty) (HLA HLA HTAY/AFP/Getty Images)

The commission’s report did accept that some things might have happened that broke the law, attributing it to excessive action on the part of individual members of the security forces.

The Burmese commission had received 21 reports from villagers of incidents of murder, rape, arson and torture by the security forces, but, unable to verify their veracity, it referred them to the authorities.

“We opened doors for them to complain to the courts if they have evidence that they suffered human rights abuses, but no one came to open a lawsuit until now,” Zaw Myint Pe, the secretary of the panel said.

The commission blamed the violence on the insurgents, accusing them of links to organisations abroad, “set up to destabilise and harm Myanmar (Burma)”.

Rohingya men at Sittwe’s bustling fish market in Rakhine, Burma (Reuters) (Soe Zeya Tun/Reuters)

The treatment of the roughly one million Muslim Rohingya has emerged as majority Buddhist Burma’s most contentious rights issue as it makes a transition from decades of harsh military rule.

The Rohingya are denied citizenship and classified as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh, despite claiming roots in the region that go back centuries, with communities marginalised and occasionally subjected to communal violence.