Myanmar navy detains 727 more 'boat people'

Myanmar navy detained 727 more "boat people" within its waters in southwestern Ayeyawaddy region Friday morning, official sources said.

The 727 Bengali "boat people" -- 608 males, 74 females and 45 children, who were on board a fishing trawler -- were intercepted by the Myanmar navy some 30 nautical miles east of Pyapon town's Daminseik village, Xinhua news agency reported.

The detained people were sent by the navy to Haigyi Island for further action, the sources said.

The starting point and destination of the suspicious fishing vessel are unknown.

During its regular patrolling in Myanmar territorial waters on May 21, Myanmar navy intercepted two suspected fishing trawlers off the western coast of Maungtaw in western Rakhine state, one of which had 208 people on board and the other was empty.

Among them, 200 were identified as Bangladeshis and arrangements were being made to repatriate them to their homeland under an agreement between authorities of Myanmar and Bangladesh.