More than 500 people are feared dead after two boats carrying Rohingya refugees sank in the Bay of Bengal off the coast of Myanmar, the United Nations said.
According to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), the boats departed Myanmar’s Rakhine State in late June. One was carrying about 267 people, while the other had around 247 on board. No survivors have been confirmed, and the fate of those aboard remains unknown.
The United Nations described the tragedy as one of the deadliest maritime disasters involving Rohingya refugees in recent years and called for stronger search-and-rescue operations and increased humanitarian assistance.