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A boat was carrying about 300 migrants myanmar overturned last week Indian Ocean close to the border between Thailand At least one body floating in the sea off Malaysia and Malaysia has been recovered, 10 have been rescued and dozens are missing, officials said Sunday.
The time and exact location of the boat sinking were not immediately known.
A Malaysian official said the ship may have capsized in Thai waters, warning that cross-border syndicates are becoming increasingly active in exploiting migrants using dangerous sea routes. A police chief said some of those rescued were Rohingya MuslimsWho mainly live in Myanmar where they have faced persecution for decades.
First Admiral Romley Mustapha of the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said preliminary investigations indicated the boat had departed from the town of Buthidaung in Myanmar’s Rakhine state. And he drowned three days ago.
The agency launched a search and rescue operation on Saturday after several survivors were found floating in the water near Malaysia’s northern resort island of Langkawi. He said that the body of a woman was found floating in the sea, who is believed to be from Myanmar.
He said at least 10 people were rescued from the incident, including one person from Bangladesh and several people from Myanmar. “It is likely that more victims will be located as the operation continues,” Romley said in a statement.
Malaysian state police chief Adzali Abu Shah told the national Bernama news agency that the ship probably sank in Thai waters before the victims washed up in Malaysia.
In January, Malaysian authorities stopped two boats carrying about 300 people, believed to be Muslim Rohingya refugees, who were trying to enter the country illegally. Malaysia is a popular destination due to its dominant Malay Muslim population.
Malaysia has accepted the Rohingya on humanitarian grounds in the past, but has tried to limit their numbers due to fears of mass arrivals on boats.
There are approximately 117,670 Rohingya refugees registered with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees in Malaysia – approximately 59% of Malaysia’s total refugee population.