UN says over 500 feared dead after Myanmar boat capsizes

The United Nations warned on Thursday, July 16, 2026, that more than 500 people are feared dead following reports of two shipwrecks off the coast of Myanmar. The UN's International Organization for Migration and refugee agency UNHCR issued a joint statement expressing grave concern over the incidents, which they said involved two vessels that may have capsized in recent days.

Preliminary information indicates the boats departed from Myanmar's conflict-ridden Rakhine state in late June. The passengers were primarily Rohingya, a persecuted Muslim minority from Myanmar. Some of those on board had reportedly traveled from the massive refugee camps in Cox's Bazar, Bangladesh, where over a million Rohingya live in squalid conditions after fleeing violence in their homeland.

According to the UN agencies, one boat, believed to be carrying approximately 250 people, lost contact shortly after departure. A second vessel, reportedly carrying about 280 people, is believed to have sunk off Myanmar's Ayeyarwady coast on July 8. The incidents and casualty figures have not been officially confirmed, but the agencies stated they are gravely concerned by the potentially devastating loss of life.