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Rohingya sea crossings hit record death toll in 2025, UNHCR says

Nearly 900 Rohingya refugees were reported missing or dead in the Andaman Sea and Bay of Bengal in 2025, making it the deadliest year on record for the route, the United Nations refugee agency said on Friday. More than one in seven of the estimated 6,500 Rohingya refugees who attempted the sea crossing last year were reported missing or dead, the highest mortality rate worldwide for refugee and migrant sea journeys, UNHCR spokesperson Babar Baloch told reporters in Geneva. The dangerous sea crossings have continued into 2026, with more than 2,800 Rohingya embarking on such journeys up until April 13 this year, Baloch said. "This sad and tragic trend continues, this sense of desperation among the Rohingya population," he said. Read: UN looks to boost food security for Rohingya in Bangladesh Deadly maritime journeys have become a recurring feature of a long-running humanitarian crisis resulting from conflict in Myanmar, as members of the Rohingya Muslim minority continue to ris...
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EU working on jet fuel plan as US-Iran crisis threatens air travel

The European Union is drafting plans to tackle ​a looming jet fuel supply crunch and maximise refinery output, officials said. European airlines have warned of jet fuel shortages within weeks as ‌a result of the US-Israel war against Iran, disrupting travel ahead of summer. Europe is more dependent on jet fuel imports, with some 75% from the Middle East, than on any other transport fuel. From next month, the European Commission will introduce EU-wide mapping of refining capacity for oil products and introduce measures "to ensure that existing refining capacity is fully utilised and ​maintained", a draft proposal seen by Reuters said. The EU is also working on measures targeting jet fuel supply, but those are still in development, ​officials familiar with the proposals said. The Commission declined to comment on the draft plans, which are due to be ⁠published on April 22. Jet fuel prices have soared since the blocking of the Strait of Hormuz, and European airlines are warning of price hikes, cancellations ​and grounded planes if the war does not end soon. Also Read: Israel, Lebanon to speak after '34 years', says Trump US President Donald Trump said in comments aired on Wednesday that the war with Iran could end soon, ​telling the world to watch out for an "amazing two days", while US forces imposing a blockade turned back vessels leaving Iranian ports. Shortages could hit summer holiday season Airlines are preparing for a potential supply crunch, with the International Energy Agency forecasting jet fuel shortages by June if the region can only replace half of the supplies it normally gets from the ​Middle East. Increased imports from Africa and the US are unlikely to fully make up for the drop, while fuel handling consortia that feed into airports ​do not always keep long-term stocks, analysts said, and many airports do not keep large stocks on hand. Some airports have warned of shortages within three weeks if the Strait of ‌Hormuz remains ⁠closed to fuel shipments. As domestic oil production has shrunk and governments have sought to shift to cleaner energy sources, Europe's refining capacity has declined in recent years. Also Read: Australia refinery fire worsens fuel supply crunch amid Iran war The IEA said this month that many European refiners are already operating at maximum capacity for jet fuel production. "Our (jet fuel) suppliers are changing their forecasting windows, and they're no longer keen to give an outlook over a time window that goes beyond one month," Lufthansa CTO, Grazia Vittadini, told Reuters in Frankfurt on ​Wednesday. A spokesperson for UK airport Heathrow ​said that the impacts of the ⁠war had not yet hit its operations, although it was monitoring the situation. ADP, owner of Paris Charles de Gaulle, did not respond to a request for comment. The proposed EU rules would not be expected to impact Britain, ​which is outside the 27-member bloc. Jet fuel stocks vary around Europe Jet fuel supplies are highly uneven across Europe. Spain ​has eight refineries and is ⁠a net exporter of jet fuel, while imports cover more than 60% of British demand. European airlines have asked the EU to improve monitoring of jet fuel supplies and consider joint purchasing of kerosene. The OECD Europe region, which includes EU countries as well as others like Britain and Norway, imports more than 30% of its jet ⁠fuel, IEA ​data shows, with most going through the Strait. The EU requires its members to maintain 90 days ​of emergency oil reserves as a buffer against supply shocks. This does not include a specific requirement on jet fuel, although countries can count it and other oil products towards their stock.

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