The United Nations appealed for the immediate rescue of 185 people, including women and children, on a stricken boat in the Indian Ocean near the Andaman and Nicobar Islands.
In a statement, the UNHCR refugee agency stated that around 70 of those onboard are children and 88 are women.
“At least a dozen are feared to be in critical condition with one individual reported to have already died”, the statement reads.
It went on to say, “Many more could die under the watch of numerous coastal states without timely rescue and disembarkation to the nearest place of safety”.
According to UNHCR spokesman Babar Baloch, the agency is contacting all the coastal authorities in the area to rescue the migrants, who are believed to be Rohingya.
Baloch stated, “It is a desperate situation”.
Every year, thousands of mostly Muslim Rohingya refugees flee Myanmar and refugee camps in Bangladesh, hoping to enter Malaysia or Indonesia.
According to UNHCR, around 2,000 Rohingya are believed to have attempted the perilous trek to Southeast Asian countries in 2022.
Furthermore, over 570 persons, mainly Rohingya refugees, have been reported dead or missing at sea in the region since last year.
Concerning the persons who are currently stranded, the agency stressed that a larger tragedy is preventable with timely efforts to save lives.
“This situation once again underlines the importance of all states in the region deploying their full search and rescue capacities to avoid human disasters happening at this scale”, UNHCR added.
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