At least 12 die as Rohingya refugee boat bound for Bangladesh capsizes

12 people, including a boy and an elderly woman, have died after a dinghy filled with asylum seekers fleeing Myanmar capsized in the waters off Bangladesh on Sunday, the country’s border guard service reported. It is unknown how many people were on board at the time it overturned near the island of Shah Porir Dwip on the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, as scores of people are reported missing. Eight people were rescued and the search and rescue operation is continuing into Monday morning. Bangladesh has become a primary destination for Rohingya people fleeing persecution in Myanmar, after the Myanmar government unleashed a crackdown on the Muslim minority in late August following an attack by Rohingya militants on army and police positions. Over 500,000 Rohingya are estimated to have left the country in less than two months.