427 Rohingya May Have Drowned In Two Shipwrecks In May: UN
The United Nations said Friday it feared that 427 Rohingya, Myanmar's persecuted Muslim minority, had perished at sea in two shipwrecks on May 9 and 10 off the Myanmar coast.
If confirmed, this would be the "deadliest tragedy at sea" involving Rohingya refugees so far this year, the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees(UNHCR) said in a statement.
The Rohingya have been persecuted in Myanmar for decades. Thousands of them risk their lives every year by fleeing repression and civil war in their country by sea, often aboard makeshift boats.
"The UN Refugee Agency is gravely concerned about reports of two boat tragedies off the coast of Myanmar earlier this month," a statement read.
UNHCR said it was still working to confirm the exact circumstances surrounding the shipwrecks but preliminary information indicated that a first vessel carrying 267 people sank on May 9, with only 66 people surviving.
A second ship with 247 Rohingya on board capsized on May 10, with just 21 survivors, the UN agency said.
The Rohingya on board were either leaving Bangladesh's huge Cox's Bazar refugee camps or fleeing Myanmar's western state of Rakhine, the statement said.
Rakhine state has been the scene of fierce fighting between the military and the Arakan Army, an ethnic minority rebel group, over control of the territory.
"The dire humanitarian situation, exacerbated by funding cuts, is having a devastating impact on the lives of Rohingya, with more and more resorting to dangerous journeys to seek safety, protection and a dignified life for themselves and their families," said Hai Kyung Jun, who leads UNHCR's regional bureau for Asia and the Pacific.
In 2024, some 657 Rohingya died in the region's waters, according to UNHCR.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
India Gazette
40 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"Justice has been served," says BJP's Suvendu Adhikari after Sharmistha Panoli gets interim bail
Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], June 5 (ANI): After Calcutta High Court granted interim bail to law student Sharmistha Panoli, West Bengal Assembly Leader of Opposition and BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari on Thursday said, 'justice has been served today'. In a post on X, Suvendu Adhikari said, 'Justice has been served today - Sharmistha Panoli, a law student, aged about 22 years, has been released on interim bail by the Hon'ble High Court at Calcutta.' He called her arrest 'police atrocities' and said she was wrongly arrested for exercising her right to free speech. He accused Kolkata Police of acting to please political leaders. 'This is a case of police atrocities as an innocent young lady, for using her freedom of speech and expression, has been illegally arrested by the Kolkata Police and was sent to judicial custody. This is yet another example of police overzealousness and eagerness to please their political masters,' the post reads. The court directed her to cooperate with the investigation, not leave the country, and furnished bail on a personal bond of Rs 10,000. The court also ordered appropriate police protection for her. Meanwhile, BJP MLA Agnimitra Paul and West Bengal BJP Legal Cell member Sanjukta Samanta filed an FIR against Wazahat Khan, who filed an FIR against Sharmistha Panoli, at two Police Stations, Ballygunje Police Station, Kolkata and Howrah Police Station. Paul said there should be equal rights and rules for every community. Speaking to ANI, Agnimitra Paul said, 'Yes, I have filed a police complaint against Wazahat Khan, who filed a police complaint against Sharmistha Panoli. I believe that Dr BR Ambedkar Ji's constitution is applicable in West Bengal, and there should be equal rights and rules for every Khan, who complained against Sharmistha Panoli, had posted an abusive post against our goddess Maa Kamakhya and Lord Krishna. If a Muslim is insulting my god and goddess, the same action needs to be taken for Wazahat Assam CM Himanta Biswa Sarma has sent his police force to arrest Wazahat Khan, Mamata Banerjee's police, because of her Muslim appeasement, have been hiding and shielding Wazahat Khan...' The 22-year-old law student from Pune, Sharmistha Panoli, was arrested by Kolkata Police in Gurugram on May 30, for allegedly hurting religious sentiments with a video on Operation Sindoor. The Instagram clip was reportedly derogatory towards a particular religion. However, Panoli had deleted the video and issued an apology on May 15. (ANI)
India Gazette
40 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"India today speaks with strength, not submission": Assam CM hits back at Rahul Gandhi's "surrender" remarks on PM
New Delhi [India], June 5 (ANI): Launching a scathing attack on Congress MP Rahul Gandhi over his 'surrender' remarks on PM Modi, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma on Thursday slammed Congress, accusing it of surrendering India's pride, security, and sovereignty over historical dates from losing PoK and Aksai Chin. In a long post on X, CM Himanta, citing Prime Minister Modi's strong response through Uri, Balakot, and Galwan, said that 'India today speaks with strength, not submission.' 'Rahul Gandhi has the audacity to mock the Hon'ble Prime Minister Narendra Modi as 'Surrender Modi' despite the massive success of #OperationSindoor. Let's jog his memory as to which party and family has surrendered India's interest and territory, and backstabbed the people with their treachery,' he said. 'It was Pandit Nehru who rushed to the United Nations during the Kashmir conflict, halted our advancing Army, and gifted away what we now call Pakistan-occupied Kashmir. A military victory sacrificed at the altar of global appeasement,' CM Sarma said. Attacking the Congress over Aksai Chin, the Assam CM said that 38,000 sq km of Indian territory was handed over without firing a bullet. 'Nehru's only response when China threatened Assam? Was this statesmanship or surrender @RahulGandhi? Assam was nearly cut off. The entire Northeast was abandoned to fate,' Himanta Biswa Sarma said. Further, CM Sarma said that former Prime Minister Indira Gandhi had 93,000 Pakistani soldiers in custody during the 1971 war, the moment, he said, could be used to take back PoK. 'Indira Gandhi had 93,000 Pakistani soldiers in custody after the 1971 war. But instead of using that leverage to recover PoK or secure reparations, she released them--empty-handed. A historic military win squandered at the negotiating table,' he said. 'Despite full readiness, the Congress government deferred India's nuclear tests under American pressure. It took Atal Bihari Vajpayee in 1998 to finally make India a declared nuclear power. After 166 innocent Indians were butchered by Pakistan-backed terrorists in 26/11, what did Congress do? No response. No justice. No accountability. Just silence,' the Assam CM said. Sharpening his attacks further, CM Himanta Sarma claimed that the Congress didn't just surrender land, it surrendered India's pride, security, and sovereignty. 'Even after victory, they couldn't secure 9 Indian POWs from Pakistan. Even after the liberation of Bangladesh, they left Assam vulnerable, its fate hanging by the 'chicken neck' corridor. Even in 1962, Nehru was ready to abandon Assam to the Chinese,' he said. Praising Prime Minister Modi's leadership, the Assam CM said that those 'dark days are over'. 'Under PM Narendra Modi, India doesn't plead. We act in Uri, we strike in Balakot, we stand our ground in Galwan, and we lead globally. From military to diplomacy, from economy to national security, India today speaks with strength, not submission. Congress must stop projecting its own history of cowardice onto the shoulders of a leader who refuses to bend. India remembers. India has risen. And India won't surrender again,' CM Himanta said on X. This comes after Congress leader Rahul Gandhi attacked the BJP-led government on Tuesday over allegations of mediation by the United States in Operation Sindoor. He alleged that Prime Minister Narendra Modi 'followed' Donald Trump following a call by the US leader and that the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi did not budge to the US in the 1971 war. Addressing a convention of Congress workers in Bhopal, LoP Rahul Gandhi said, 'Now, I understand RSS-BJP well. They run away out of fear if slight pressure is put on them. When Trump called Modiji- Modiji kya kar rahe ho, Narender-Surrender and with 'ji hazooor', Narenderji followed Trump. In the 1971 war, the Seventh Fleet (which came from the US), India Gandhi said I will do whatever I have to do. This is the difference. This is their character; all of them are like this. Since the Independence movement, they have had the habit of writing letters of surrender.' (ANI)
India Gazette
40 minutes ago
- India Gazette
"No equivalence": Shashi Tharoor expresses scepticism on mediation in conflicts involving terrorism
New York [US], June 5 (ANI): Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, who is leading an all-party delegation to the United States on Thursday, expressed scepticism about the role of mediation in conflicts involving terrorism, emphasising that there can be no equivalence between terrorists and their victims. Tharoor stressed that there's no moral or factual equivalence between countries harbouring terrorism and those affected by it. When asked if it is helpful to have the United States available as a mediator between India and Pakistan, Tharoor said, 'Mediation is not a term that we are particularly willing to entertain. You're implying an equivalence that simply doesn't exist. There is no equivalence between terrorists and their victims. There is no equivalence between a country that provides a safe haven to terrorism and a country that's a flourishing multi-party democracy that's trying to get on with its business.' He highlighted the complexities of international diplomacy, suggesting that any influence the US might have had would be more effective if applied to the side supporting terrorism. He acknowledged the US government's interest and concern, noting that diplomatic efforts might have been more impactful if directed at the party supporting terrorist activities. Tharoor speculated that the US might have had more influence on the side that needed persuading to stop supporting terrorism. 'My government received a number of calls at high levels from the US government and we appreciated their concern and their interest. At the same time, they must have been making similar calls at the highest levels to the Pakistan side. Because that's the side that needed persuading to stop this process, that may well have been where their messages really had the greatest effect. But that's guesswork on my part. I don't know what they said to the Pakistanis...,' said Tharoor. Speaking about how India, time and again, conveyed information through proper and authentic channels of communication, Tharoor noted that the Indian side had regular, systematic briefings by civil and military officers. He brought to attention that the briefings were conducted by women officers from the military, one of whom is a Muslim, thereby stating, 'This is not a Hindu versus Muslim, it is United India against terror, and that message came across very well'. Congress MP Shashi Tharoor is leading the all-party delegation which includes Shambhavi Chaudhary (Lok Janshakti Party), Sarfaraz Ahmed (Jharkhand Mukti Morcha), G M Harish Balayogi (Telugu Desam Party), Shashank Mani Tripathi, Tejaswi Surya, and Bhubaneswar Kalita (all from the BJP), Mallikarjun Devda (Shiv Sena), former Indian Ambassador to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhu, and Shiv Sena MP Milind Deora. The all-party delegation reached the US after completing their visit to Brazil. Their purpose is to brief key US stakeholders on Operation Sindoor, India's diplomatic effort launched to combat terrorism and disinformation following the recent terror attack in Pahalgam, Jammu and Kashmir. (ANI)
