Around 250 missing after Rohingya refugee boat capsizes in Andaman Sea

KARACHI: Around 250 people are feared missing after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals capsized in the Andaman Sea, according to a joint statement by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration.

The agencies said the overcrowded trawler, carrying men, women and children, reportedly sank due to heavy winds and rough sea conditions. The vessel had departed from Teknaf in southern Bangladesh and was headed towards Malaysia.

In a statement, the UN agencies said the tragedy underscores the severe human cost of prolonged displacement and the lack of lasting solutions for the Rohingya population.

For years, members of the Rohingya Muslim minority from Myanmar have undertaken dangerous sea journeys on unsafe boats in an attempt to reach countries such as Malaysia, Indonesia and Thailand, fleeing persecution or overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh.

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The agencies urged the international community to increase and sustain funding for lifesaving assistance to Rohingya refugees in Bangladesh, as well as provide continued support to host communities.

The Rohingya crisis escalated in 2017 when Myanmar’s military launched an offensive that forced more than 730,000 people to flee into Bangladesh. Refugees reported widespread killings, sexual violence and arson during the crackdown.

A United Nations fact-finding mission later concluded that the 2017 operation involved genocidal acts, a claim denied by Myanmar, which has maintained that the findings were not objective.