nearly-250-feared-missing-after-boat-capsizes-in-andaman-sea-un

Nearly 250 people, including children, are feared missing after a boat carrying Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals capsized in the Andaman Sea, the United Nations said on Tuesday.

 

In a statement, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees said the trawler had departed from Teknaf in southern Bangladesh and was headed towards Malaysia when it sank amid heavy winds, rough seas and overcrowding.

 

Preliminary information suggests the vessel was carrying around 280 people when it left on April 4. The incident is among the latest in a series of maritime tragedies involving Rohingya refugees attempting perilous journeys across the region.

 

Officials said a ship of the Bangladesh Coast Guard rescued nine survivors on April 9 after spotting people floating in the sea using makeshift flotation devices such as drums and logs near the Andaman Islands.

 

A spokesperson said the rescued individuals, including a woman, were later handed over to a patrol vessel for further assistance.

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A survivor, Rafiqul Islam, informed that he had boarded the boat after being promised employment in Malaysia. He alleged that passengers were confined in cramped compartments and subjected to abuse by traffickers.

 

“A number of us were kept in the holding area of the trawler, and some died there… We floated for nearly 36 hours before a ship rescued us,” he said.

 

According to his account, the vessel was overcrowded, with nearly 280 people on board, including about 150 Rohingya refugees, Bangladeshi nationals, women and children. He claimed that several passengers died due to suffocation and harsh conditions even before the boat capsized.

 

The Rohingya, a persecuted Muslim minority from Myanmar’s Rakhine state, often attempt dangerous sea crossings to escape violence and poor living conditions in refugee camps, particularly in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar, which hosts over a million displaced people.

 

The UNHCR said the latest tragedy signals the “dire consequences of protracted displacement” and the lack of durable solutions for Rohingya refugees.

 

It called for urgent efforts to address the root causes of displacement in Myanmar and to create conditions that would allow refugees to return safely and voluntarily.