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Anadolu Agency (16 July 2026)

Riyaz ul Khaliq

More than 500 people, most of whom belong to the persecuted Rohingya community, are feared dead after two boats carrying them capsized off Myanmar in recent days, two UN agencies said on Thursday.

A joint statement by the UN Refugee Agency and the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said the two vessels departed from Myanmar’s Rakhine state in late June carrying mostly Rohingya passengers, including some who are said to have traveled from refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh.

One boat, carrying around 250 people, “lost contact shortly after departure,” it said, adding that the second boat, reportedly carrying some 280 people, “is believed to have sunk off Myanmar’s Ayeyarwady coast on 8 July.”

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