The IOM and UNHCR say two boats carrying principally Rohingya passengers departed Rakhine State in late June.
Printed On 16 Jul 2026
Two boats carrying greater than 500 persons are feared to have capsized off the coast of Myanmar in current days, United Nations companies have stated.
In response to preliminary info reported on Thursday by the Worldwide Group for Migration (IOM) and the UN refugee company (UNHCR), the 2 vessels departed from Myanmar’s Rakhine State in late June carrying principally Rohingya passengers.
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One boat, believed to have been carrying about 250 folks, misplaced contact shortly after departure. A second boat, reportedly carrying some 280 folks, is believed to have sunk off Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady coast on July 8, they stated.
“Whereas the incidents and casualty figures have but to be formally confirmed, UNHCR and IOM are gravely involved by the doubtless devastating lack of life,” learn the assertion.
Earlier than the newest incidents, more than 300 people had been killed or reported missing within the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal, it stated. These included Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi nationals, it added.
″Whereas the incidents and casualty figures have but to be formally confirmed, UNHCR and IOM are gravely involved by the doubtless devastating lack of life,” the companies stated.
The Rohingya, who’ve lately fled each Myanmar and Bangladesh’s refugee camps by the 1000’s, usually keep away from such boat journeys at the moment of yr, when monsoons are frequent, and circumstances at sea are significantly harmful. The UNHCR and IOM famous this of their assertion, saying that current torrential rain and flooding throughout the area would have made such journeys particularly dangerous.
About 1.2 million stateless, predominantly Muslim Rohingya stay in overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh after fleeing waves of violence by Myanmar’s safety forces. Steep cuts to overseas help by the US and different nations have led to ration cuts within the camps.
The refugees have no way to safely return to Myanmar, the place the army that killed 1000’s of Rohingya in 2017 throughout what a number of nations have declared a genocide stays accountable for their homeland. The Rohingya nonetheless residing in Myanmar face extreme restrictions and lots of are confined to internment camps, whereas the army and an armed group in Rakhine have fought for management of the area.
The unrest has led to an growing variety of Rohingya trying to make the damaging ocean crossing to Malaysia on rickety boats. Hundreds have died within the course of, together with infants, kids and pregnant ladies. Native maritime authorities have regularly deserted the Rohingya at sea, usually ignoring studies of boats in misery.
The IOM and UNHCR stated on Thursday that the newest potential tragedy at sea underscores the continued lack of sustainable options for the Rohingya, and urged the worldwide group to assist these trapped in Bangladesh’s camps.
“Stronger regional and worldwide efforts are wanted to forestall additional lack of life alongside one of many world’s deadliest maritime routes, together with by way of enhanced search and rescue efforts, entry to asylum and safety, and actions in opposition to smuggling and trafficking networks,” the companies stated.
Greater than 6,500 Rohingya fled, and almost 900 have been reported useless or lacking in 2025, the deadliest yr for Rohingya who tried to depart by boat. The determine represents the best mortality price of any main route for refugee and migrant sea journeys on this planet, the UNHCR stated.
