International Desk: Bangladesh is trying to stop Rohingya refugees risking their lives in boats to Southeast Asia, a government official said, amid fears that this year could be one of the most deadly in years for the persecuted Muslims from Myanmar seeking new lives.

A boat washed ashore in Indonesia’s Aceh province on Monday carrying 174 Rohingya, most of them dehydrated, exhausted and in urgent need of medical care after weeks at sea, disaster agency officials said.

The UN refugee agency UNHCR said on Monday 2022 could be one of the deadliest years at sea in almost a decade for the Rohingya as a growing number flee desperate conditions in refugee camps in Bangladesh, despite attempts to stop them.

“We’re doing everything possible to stop them from taking the dangerous voyages,” Bangladesh’s Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner Mohammad Mizanur Rahman told Reuters late on Monday.