Fears grow for Rohingya refugees cast adrift for two weeks

UN warns of possible tragedy unless hundreds of people are rescued from two boats on Andaman Sea

About 400 Rohingya refugees have been adrift in two boats on the Andaman Sea for about two weeks, according to the United Nations, which called on regional governments to help rescue them.

The number of Rohingya Muslims fleeing by boats in a seasonal exodus – usually from squalid, overcrowded refugee camps in Bangladesh – has been rising since last year due to cuts to food rations and an increase in gang violence.