Out of options, Rohingya are fleeing Myanmar and Bangladesh by boat despite soaring death toll

The United Nations' refugee agency is reporting that one in every eight Rohingya who attempted to flee their homeland of Myanmar and the refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh by boat last year died or went missing

SYDNEY -- Across a treacherous stretch of water, the Rohingya came by the thousands, then died by the hundreds. And though they know the dangers of fleeing by boat, many among this persecuted people say they will not stop — because the world has left them with no other choice.

Last year, nearly 4,500 Rohingya — two-thirds of them women and children — fled their homeland of Myanmar and the refugee camps in neighboring Bangladesh by boat, the United Nations’ refugee agency reported. Of those, 569 died or went missing while crossing the Bay of Bengal and Andaman Sea, the highest death toll since 2014.

The numbers mean one out of every eight Rohingya who attempted the crossing never made it, the UNHCR said last week.

Yet despite the risks, there are no signs the stream of Rohingya is ebbing. On Thursday, Indonesian officials said another boat carrying Rohingya refugees landed in the country’s northern province of Aceh.

Fishermen provided food and water to 131 Rohingya, mostly women and children, who had been on board, said Marzuki, the leader of the local tribal fishing community, who like many Indonesians goes by one name.