Rohingya insurgents have said they have “no other option” but to continue their fight against what they have called Myanmar state-sponsored terrorism to defend their community.

The Rohingya minority has been subjected to what the United Nations has called “a textbook example of ethnic cleansing” in which thousands have been killed and hundreds of thousands more fled to neighbouring Bangladesh.

The latest wave of violence began on 25 August when the Arakan Rohingya Salvation Army (Arsa) launched raids on Burmese security forces in Rakhine state in the west of the country.

The attacks sparked a sweeping crackdown on the minority group by the state and members of the ethnic Rakhine majority which has led to widespread violence and arson.

Last month, Medecins Sans Frontiers (MSF) reported that 10,000 people had been killed and over 600,000 people have forced to flee.

The Rohingya minority, which is predominantly Muslim, has been the subject of intense persecution for decades in the Buddhist majority country.

The Myanmar government calls the Rohingya “Bengalis” and claims they are the descendents of illegal immigrants from Bangladesh who migrated to Rakhine during the days of the British Empire but the community can trace its roots back centuries to the ancient Arakan civilisation.

In a statement posted by Arsa leader Ata Ullah on Twitter on Sunday, the group vowed to continue fighting against the Burmese state.

He said: “Arsa has ... no other option but to combat ‘Burmese state-sponsored terrorism’ against the Rohingya population for the purpose of defending, salvaging and protecting the Rohingya community.

“Rohingya people must be consulted in all decision-making that affects their humanitarian needs and political future.”

Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Show all 15 1 /15 Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Badiul Alam, 52, appointed as the manager of one grouping of refugees, shows the rifle-butt injury he sustained during his flight from Myanmar Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Abdur Rahim, 50, fled Myanmar with his family of seven. It took a month for them to walk to Bangladesh, carrying all their possessions on their shoulders. They haven’t yet found a place to put down their belongings after a gruelling journey Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Various refugee camps – Kutupalong, Balukhali and Moinerghona – have merged into one vast sprawl spread over many muddy hills that just a few months ago were a rolling green nature reserve Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps A Red Cross aid-worker supervises an aid distribution point on the edge of the Moinerghona camp, saying they have never known refugees anywhere in the world stand so patiently in line in such heat to be registered and receive aid without any tension or anger Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Last week the governments of Bangladesh and Myanmar signed a deal to return the Rohingya to Rakhine. But many worry that they will face further reprisals if they return, and there was no mention of what would happen to those who refused to go back Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps A quiet calm pervades the camps. Is it relief at being free from fear, or do feelings about the horrors witnessed remain suppressed? Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps The aid response is focused on providing food, water and shelter for people who fled with nothing Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps The effort is now well-organised and trucks delivering supplies move up and down the main road between Cox’s Bazar and Teknaf all day long Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Only men are in the aid queue, as separate queues are often set up for men and women. Sixty-five-year-old Nur Ahmed wears his ID card which shows he has been formally registered to receive aid Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Ajmin Ara, 70, wanders around disorientated. She has lost her entire family and fled to Bangladesh alone; she is painfully thin/skeletal and very weak, but is receiving medical care from a small clinic set up to the side of the aid queue Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps It’s estimated that 620,000 Rohingya people have fled violence in Myanmar’s Rakhine State in the last three months. Many say they were doing their morning prayers or cooking food when their villages were attacked and they fled, often with only the clothes they were wearing Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Nur Asha, 47, sits quietly in the crowd until she can no longer restrain herself and her story comes out in a torrent: how she fled with her son when the military attacked her village but doesn’t know where her other relatives are, how throats were slashed, how children were thrown into fires, how rice paddy fields were filled with bodies left for the dogs to eat Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Mohammed Sayed, 24, fled Myanmar about a month ago with his parents, wife and sister after their home was burnt down and many people in their village were killed Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Children flock around the queue and one boy has made a hat from an empty medicine package to shield himself from the heat, but other boys playing nearby tease him and knock it off his head and soon it is ripped to pieces Hope in Bangladesh’s Rohingya camps Children who have fled with nothing make toy cars from empty bottles and kites from plastic bags. Despite the horrors they will have witnessed, children still laugh and play for the camera

Since the August raids, the small insurgent group has launched few if any attacks until Friday, when its fighters ambushed a Myanmar military truck, wounding several members of the security forces.

A Myanmar government spokesman said the insurgents were trying to delay the repatriation of refugees from Bangladesh under a plan the two governments have been working on.

“Arsa aims to frighten those who are considering returning, to show the region doesn't have peace,” Zaw Htay said.

But the Rohingya refugees claim they have not been fully consulted on the plan and many questions remain about the terms under which they will return to Rakhine.

A Bangladeshi border guard stands watch at a camp in the no man's land on the border with Myanmar (Getty Images)

For years, the Rohingya have been denied citizenship, freedom of movement and access to services such as healthcare and it is unclear whether they will be granted concessions when they return..

Mr Zaw rejected the Arsa call for the Rohingya to be consulted, saying the government was already negotiating with leaders of both the Buddhist and Muslim communities.

“We will not accept terrorism and fight against them until the end,” he said, adding that no one should offer any support to the group.

The Arsa has dismissed any links to Islamist militant groups and says it is fighting to end the oppression of the Rohingya people.

A military spokesman declined to make any immediate comment about the security situation in Rakhine State.

The violence that began in August and the refugee crisis it caused has drawn international condemnation and raised doubts about Myanmar's transition to democracy after nearly 50 years of military rule.

Myanmar’s de facto civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, has been heavily criticised by the international community for the silence on the abuses committed by the Rohingya.

The Nobel Peace Prize laureate has seen the revocation of many the humanitarian awards she received while she was under house arrest for her protest against the Myanmar regime such as the Freedoms of the City of Dublin and Oxford.