Bangladesh rescues 382 Rohingya drifting at sea for weeks

Thursday, 16 April 2020 11:16

Bangladesh’s coastguard has rescued at least 382 "starving" Rohingya refugees, who had been drifting at sea for nearly two months.

More than two dozen people died on the boat, officials said, adding that the survivors will be sent to Myanmar.

According to media reports, the boat was headed to Malaysia but turned back due to restrictions in place over the coronavirus pandemic.

More than a million Rohingyas live in refugee camps in southern Bangladesh after they were reportedly driven from their homes in Myanmar during a 2017 military crackdown.

More from International News

Iran names Mojtaba Khamenei as new supreme leader

Iran has named Mojtaba Khamenei to succeed his father, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, as supreme leader as the week-old US-Israeli war with Iran pushed oil above $100 a barrel.
Trump says he is 'nowhere near' deciding to send troops to Iran

President Donald Trump said on Monday that he was "nowhere near" deciding whether to send U.S. troops into Iran to secure the stockpile of highly enriched uranium there.
Lebanon parliament extends its own mandate for two years as war intensifies

Lebanon’s parliament extended its own mandate for two years on Monday, a statement from the speaker's office said, pushing back elections that were meant to take place in May of this year.
France to deploy almost dozen warships, mulls Hormuz mission, Macron says

France is deploying about a dozen naval vessels, including its aircraft carrier strike group, to the Mediterranean, Red Sea and potentially the Strait of Hormuz as part of defensive support to allies threatened by the conflict in the Middle East.