Sydney: A boat carrying about 200 suspected asylum seekers has capsized in Indonesian waters 120 nautical miles (220 km) north of Australia's Christmas Island, rescue officials said on Thursday.
An Australian customs spokesman said border protection had detected what was believed to be a people-smuggling boat in distress earlier on Thursday.
The sinking occurred within Indonesia's search and rescue zone and Australian authorities were offering assistance, Australia's Maritime Safety Authority said.
An Australian defence force aircraft had spotted survivors in the water, Sky News reported.
Refugees seeking asylum in Australia often set sail from Indonesia heading for Christmas Island in dangerous and overcrowded boats.
Fifty asylum seekers travelling from Indonesia to Christmas Island died when a storm dashed their boat onto rocks in December 2010.
An Australian customs spokesman said border protection had detected what was believed to be a people-smuggling boat in distress earlier on Thursday.
The sinking occurred within Indonesia's search and rescue zone and Australian authorities were offering assistance, Australia's Maritime Safety Authority said.
Refugees seeking asylum in Australia often set sail from Indonesia heading for Christmas Island in dangerous and overcrowded boats.
Advertisement
© Thomson Reuters 2012
COMMENTS
Advertisement
Indians Rescued From Capsized Vessel Near Oman Being Looked After: Minister 6 Missing After Boat Carrying 17 Pilgrims Sinks In Ganga In Bihar 38 Dead, 100 Missing After Migrant Boat Capsizes Off Yemen's Aden: Official Massive Worldwide Microsoft Outage: Flights, Markets, Stock Exchange Down CrowdStrike Falcon Sensor: The Culprit Behind World's Biggest IT Outage UPSC Cracks Down, Says Puja Khedkar Faked Identity, Parents' Name, Address Microsoft Outage "Affecting IT Operations" Paris Olympics Organisers Biden Or Trump, It's Still A Long Wait For Indian 'Dreamers' In US ISRO Chief Gets His PhD From IIT-Madras: "A Village Boy's Dream Fulfilled" Track Latest News Live on NDTV.com and get news updates from India and around the world.