Shipwreck between Thailand and Malaysia: hundreds of Rohingya missing

A boat carrying Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi citizens capsized off the coast of Langkawi in one of the worst accidents ever recorded. Malaysian authorities have reported seven victims and only 13 survivors so far. This year alone, the UNHCR has reported over 600 deaths or missing persons along the Gulf of Bengal routes.

Langkawi (AsiaNews) - A new tragedy in the sea between Thailand and Malaysia has brought attention back to the desperate flight of Rohingya from Myanmar: hundreds of refugees are missing after an overloaded boat capsized off Langkawi, which marks the maritime border between the two Southeast Asian countries.

Malaysian authorities reported that they recovered seven bodies and 13 survivors yesterday, Sunday 9 November, three days after the accident. Images released by the Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency (MMEA) show rescuers helping exhausted migrants, some wrapped in sheets or lying on stretchers.

The boat, which set sail from Buthidaung in Myanmar's western Rakhine State, was carrying about 300 people, mostly Rohingya refugees and Bangladeshi citizens. Authorities in Kedah and Perlis, Malaysia, have extended the search to an area of 170 square nautical miles, mobilising ships and aircraft to locate other survivors.

So far, three men who left Myanmar have been identified, while a Rohingya woman has been identified among the victims.

According to Kedah police chief Adzli Abu Shah, the migrants had initially travelled on a larger ship, but human traffickers forced them to transfer to three smaller boats, each carrying about 100 people, in an attempt to evade detection. ‘The fate of the other two boats remains unknown,’ the official said.

The Rohingya have long been persecuted by Myanmar's military regime, where they have no right to citizenship, but are also considered foreigners in other South Asian countries, such as Bangladesh, where they have sought refuge since 2017 due to military attacks by the army.

More than a million Rohingya live in overcrowded refugee camps where living conditions are increasingly difficult, especially following financial cuts by major humanitarian agencies.

Driven by poverty, hunger and growing violence even within the refugee camps, many have attempted dangerous journeys to Malaysia in recent years.

However, the routes in the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea are among the deadliest in the world: according to the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR), between January and early November 2025 alone, more than 5,100 Rohingya left Myanmar and Bangladesh by sea, and nearly 600 people are reported dead or missing.

The Malaysian authorities have also described the Langkawi incident as “one of the most serious in recent years”, a sign of a humanitarian crisis that continues to spread in silence.