The United Nations and other groups urged countries in southern Asia on Friday to rescue as many as 190 people believed to be Rohingya refugees aboard a small boat that has been adrift for several weeks in the Andaman Sea.
Most of those on board are thought to be Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar who had lived in crowded refugee camps in Bangladesh for as many as five years and are seeking a better life in Malaysia and Indonesia. Messages they reportedly sent by satellite phone to their families describe their situation as desperate.
