Dozens of Fleeing Rohingya Die after Boats Capsize

Three boats carrying ethnic Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence in Myanmar capsized in Bangladesh, killing at least 26 people, according to officials. The bodies of 15 women and 11 children were recovered in Cox’s Bazar after the vessels, which carried an unknown number of Rohingya, sank in the Naf River on Wednesday, Bangladesh border guard commander Lieutenant Colonel S.M. Ariful Islam said on Thursday. The top official in Cox’s Bazar, Mohammad Ali Hossain, said the bodies would be buried because no one had claimed them. Officials in Bangladesh said growing numbers of Rohingya are trying to cross the Naf river that divides the two countries in rickety boats ill-equipped for the rough waters as they become increasingly desperate to escape the worst outbreak of violence in the restive Rakhine state in years. Media reported that longstanding tension between the Rohingya Muslims and ethnic Rakhine Buddhists erupted in bloody rioting in 2012. That set off a surge of anti-Muslim feeling throughout the country.