Four dead after Rohingya boat capsizes off Bangladesh

At least four people including three children died after a boat packed with Rohingya refugees capsized on Tuesday morning in the Bay of Bengal close to Bangladesh's southeastern border with Myanmar, said a local police official.

The boat carrying some 33 Rohingyas sank at about 7:35 a.m. local time Tuesday, Md Abul Khair, officer-in-charge of Ukhia police station under Cox's Bazar district, some 292 km southeast of capital Dhaka, told Xinhua on phone.

He said three Rohingya people died in a hospital where they were rushed after being pulled from sea while one more body was recovered at sea shore.

Khair said the boat was very close to shore when it capsized.

Many of them were rescued while several others managed to swim ashore, he added.

Nearly 200 Rohingyas have drowned since Aug. 29 in more than two dozen boat accidents while they were making perilous crossings into Bangladesh.

(ASIA PACIFIC DAILY)