Approximately 500 migrants, primarily from Myanmar’s Rohingya minority, are feared dead following the sinking of two overcrowded vessels off the country’s coast, United Nations agencies reported Thursday. The boats were traveling across the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal toward Malaysia and Indonesia, a route known for its high fatality rates.

The first vessel, estimated to have carried around 250 people, lost contact shortly after departing from Myanmar’s Rakhine state in late June, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The second boat, with approximately 280 passengers on board, reportedly capsized on July 8. Both boats were believed to be headed for Malaysia.

Many of those on board had journeyed from Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh, home to the world’s largest refugee camp housing more than one million Rohingya refugees. The Rohingya, a Muslim minority in Myanmar, have faced systematic persecution, including denial of citizenship and widespread human rights abuses. In 2017, a military crackdown in Rakhine state prompted over 700,000 Rohingya to flee to Bangladesh. The U.S. government has classified these actions as genocide, a designation Myanmar disputes.

Following the 2021 military coup in Myanmar, renewed fighting in Rakhine has driven additional Rohingya to seek refuge abroad amid severely limited prospects in their home country. Refugees in camps such as Cox’s Bazar face restricted movement and are prohibited from working outside the camp boundaries. Humanitarian support in the camps has diminished in recent years, partly due to funding cuts from Western governments and the suspension of aid from the U.S. Agency for International Development during the Trump administration. These reductions have forced aid groups to significantly lower food rations, with some refugees receiving as little as $7 per month.

The latest boat departures occurred outside the typical sailing season, a period marked by heavy rains and flooding that heighten the dangers of the journey. In March, another boat carrying an estimated 260 people sank in the same waters. Increasingly, unaccompanied children have been among those attempting the crossing.

The Andaman Sea route remains one of the deadliest maritime passages globally. In 2025, the UNHCR reported that nearly 860 of the 6,500 Rohingya who attempted this voyage were missing or confirmed dead, reflecting the highest mortality rate of any migrant sea route worldwide.