At least 12 people were killed after an overcrowded boat carrying Rohingya Muslims who were trying to flee from Myanmar allegedly capsized near Bangladesh on Sunday.
It was reported that hundreds of people including children were on board.
The boat reportedly sank at around 10:00 pm, officials said.
Abdul Jalil, Border Guard Bangladesh (BGB) official told the reporters 12 bodies have been recovered the team has worked in the night rescue operation.
Further to this he said, 10 children, a man, and an elderly woman were found dead.
Reports say, at least 40 people in the boat were reported to be adult Rohingya Muslims who were trying to flee their villages in Rakhine.
Evan Schuurman, a spokesman with aid agency Save the Children said in a statement, “So many people are still willing to get onboard boats that are overcrowded, potentially people unable to swim. They’re literally putting their lives at risk to make it across to Bangladesh”.
It was observed that over a half a million Rohingya people have allegedly fled to Bangladesh since August 25 from Myanmar’s Rakhine state.
However, The rescue operation is currently underway.
