Indonesia’s navy provided food, water and medical supplies to around 500 passengers from Myanmar late yesterday, before sending the migrant boat across the Malacca Strait towards Malaysia, a military spokesperson said.

Four Indonesian navy vessels offered the assistance to the passengers on the migrant boat near the cape of Tanjung Jambu Aye in north Aceh.

“The passengers were still alive and in good condition,” said Navy spokesperson Manahan Simorangkir.

“They were seeking help and they didn’t want to go to Indonesia. They wanted to go to Malaysia, so we sent them on their way after providing them with food, water and medical supplies.”

More than a thousand Bangladeshi and Rohingya refugees have arrived in Malaysia and Indonesia following a crackdown on trafficking by Thailand, which is usually the first destination in the region’s people smuggling network.

- Reuters