60 believed to be dead in Rohingya boat capsize: United Nations

As many as 60 people are believed to have died when a boat carrying Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence in Myanmar capsized off Bangladesh, the United Nations on Friday.

The boat capsized in the Bay of Bengal close to Bangladesh's Cox's Bazar district late on Thursday.

Dozens of Rohingyas have already died trying to cross into Bangladesh amid a military crackdown in Myanmar's Rakhine state.

Violence erupted in Rakhine on August 25 when Rohingya militants attacked security posts, triggering a military crackdown. More than half a million Rohingya have fled to the neighbouring Bangladesh since then.

On Thursday, U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley accused Mynamar of ethnic cleansing. The Myanmar authorities, however, say the August violence in Rakhine state was instigated by Rohingya militants and deny U.N. accusations of "ethnic cleansing".