Malaysia set to intercept boat said to be carrying Rohingya
BANGKOK — Malaysian authorities said Monday that they have stepped up patrols to intercept a boat thought to be carrying dozens of people from Myanmar’s beleaguered Rohingya Muslim minority seeking refuge in the country.
Meanwhile, an expert on the plight of the Rohingya said the sighting of the boat people does not portend a new exodus by sea.
The Malaysian Maritime Enforcement Agency said it has increased patrols in the Malacca Straits and Andaman Sea, especially near Langkawi island, after hearing of Sunday’s stopover of a fishing boat with 56 people at an island in southern Thailand’s Krabi province.
The boat stopped at the island because it had been damaged in a storm. Thai officials said it was repaired and supplied with food and fuel, and sent on its way to predominantly Muslim Malaysia, the destination sought by those aboard.