Two boats carrying more than 500 people may have capsized off Myanmar’s coast in recent days, UN agencies said on Thursday, as refugees from the war-torn country make perilous maritime journeys in search of safety and better lives.
The two vessels left Myanmar’s Rakhine State in late June carrying mostly ethnic minority Rohingya passengers, reportedly including some from refugee camps in Bangladesh, the International Organization for Migration and the UN’s refugee agency said in a joint statement, citing preliminary information.
More than 500 were feared dead, it said.
“While the incidents and casualty figures have yet to be officially confirmed, UNHCR and IOM are gravely concerned by the potentially devastating loss of life.”
Driven away by violence at home and desperate conditions in crowded refugee camps in Bangladesh, Myanmar’s long-persecuted Rohingya Muslim minority have for years risked their lives on flimsy wooden vessels, hoping to reach safety and the opportunity of livelihoods in countries like Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand.
Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees died or went missing in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal last year, making it the world’s deadliest maritime route for refugees and migrants, according to the UN.
In the latest incidents, the first boat, with about 250 people on board, lost contact shortly after departure and a second vessel carrying about 280 people was believed to have sunk off Myanmar’s Irrawaddy coast on July 8, the UN agencies said.
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