Eleven dead, dozens missing after Rohingya migrant boat sinks near Thailand-Malaysia border

At least eleven people have died and dozens more are missing after a boat carrying members of Myanmar’s persecuted Rohingya community sank near the Thailand-Malaysia maritime border, Malaysian and Thai authorities confirmed on Monday.

Officials said the wooden vessel, carrying an estimated 70 passengers, capsized off the coast of Langkawi late last week. So far, 13 survivors — mostly Rohingya — have been rescued, while the search continues for the remaining passengers.

Thai authorities reported four bodies recovered, including two children, adding to the seven found by Malaysia’s maritime agency. Another boat carrying around 230 people remains unaccounted for, prompting joint air and sea operations between Malaysia and Thailand.

“We have strong coordination with the Thai maritime agency and continue to exchange information closely,” said Romli Mustafa, director of Malaysia’s Maritime Enforcement Agency in Kedah and Perlis. “Air and sea assets are being deployed, and the search operation could continue for up to seven days.”

Preliminary reports indicate that the group departed from Myanmar’s western coast, near the border with Bangladesh, around two weeks ago. Some passengers were later transferred onto smaller boats, including the one that sank, in an apparent attempt to evade maritime patrols.

A desperate exodus

The Rohingya, a Muslim minority group long persecuted in Myanmar, continue to flee violence, discrimination, and poverty in the country’s Rakhine State. More than 1.3 million now live as refugees in Bangladesh’s overcrowded camps, while others undertake dangerous sea crossings in search of safety in Malaysia, Indonesia, and Thailand.

Between January and early November 2025, over 5,100 Rohingya are believed to have attempted sea journeys from Myanmar and Bangladesh, according to the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR). Nearly 600 people have died or gone missing during that period.

Thailand’s maritime command confirmed that two of the recovered victims were carrying refugee cards identifying them as Rohingya.