LHOKSEUMAWE, Indonesia: Almost 1,000 Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar have arrived by boat in Indonesia’s northernmost province of Aceh in the last six days, officials said Monday.
They included five groups with women and children who were afloat for days. One batch of more than 240 people was twice denied landing by residents in Aceh Utara district, sparking concerns from human rights organizations. The group finally disembarked in Bireuen district on Sunday morning.
“We thank the authorities and local communities who have received and granted landing permits for them and in the future we hope that this spirit of solidarity and humanity will continue to be extended to refugees who need assistance and protection,” the the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said in a statement.
The refugees arriving in Aceh had endured a difficult sea journey. Most of them left refugee camps in Bangladesh, where more than 700,000 had fled following a crackdown by Myanmar’s army in August 2017. Myanmar security forces have been accused of mass rape, killings and the burning of thousands of Rohingya homes.
Most of the refugees have attempted to reach Malaysia, but many have ended up in Indonesia along the way.
“The thwarted landing of hundreds of Rohingya refugees is a big step back for Indonesia, where communities have previously shown generosity and humanity toward those seeking safety after perilous boat journeys,” said Usman Hamid, executive director for Amnesty International Indonesia.
Indonesia’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs said that it is not a party to the 1951 Refugee Convention, and does not have the obligation or capacity to accommodate refugees.
“Accommodation has been provided solely for humanitarian reasons. Ironically, many countries party to the convention actually closed their doors and even implemented a pushback policy toward the refugees,” Lalu Muhamad Iqbal, the ministry’s spokesperson, said in a statement.
He said that Indonesia’s kindness in providing a temporary shelter has been widely exploited by people-smugglers who seek financial gain without caring about the risks faced by refugees, especially vulnerable groups such as women and children.
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Nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees arrive by boat in Indonesia’s Aceh region in one week
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Nearly 1,000 Rohingya refugees arrive by boat in Indonesia’s Aceh region in one week
- Most of the refugees have attempted to reach Malaysia, but many have ended up in Indonesia along the way
NASA astronaut stuck in space for nine months retires
- Suni Williams stepped down from her post on December 27 — making her ill-fated mission her last journey to space
- During her career, Williams logged 608 days in space — the second most cumulative time in space by a NASA astronaut
WASHINGTON, United States: A NASA astronaut who was stuck in space for nine months because of problems with her spacecraft has retired after 27 years of service, the space agency said Tuesday.
Suni Williams stepped down from her post on December 27 — making her ill-fated mission her last journey to space.
Williams and fellow astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore set out on an eight-day mission in June 2024 to test fly Boeing’s new Starliner capsule on its first crewed mission when they were unexpectedly marooned.
Despite the incident, Williams on Tuesday called her time with NASA “an incredible honor.”
“Anyone who knows me knows that space is my absolute favorite place to be,” she said in a statement.
Boeing’s new Starliner developed propulsion issues while Williams and Wilmore were traveling to the International Space Station (ISS) and it was deemed unfit to fly back.
The technical problems prompted NASA to entrust the return of their astronauts to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, snubbing Boeing.
The two veteran astronauts finally returned safely back to Earth with SpaceX in March 2025. Wilmore announced his retirement in August that same year.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a statement on Tuesday that Williams had been a “trailblazer in human spaceflight,” adding that she shaped the “future of exploration through her leadership aboard the space station” and paved the way for commercial missions to low Earth orbit.
During her career, Williams logged 608 days in space — the second most cumulative time in space by a NASA astronaut, the agency said.
She also ranks sixth on the list of longest single spaceflights by an American due to the Starliner incident, NASA added.
Williams has completed nine spacewalks totaling 62 hours, the most spacewalk time by a woman and fourth-most on the all-time cumulative spacewalk duration list.
Suni Williams stepped down from her post on December 27 — making her ill-fated mission her last journey to space.
Williams and fellow astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore set out on an eight-day mission in June 2024 to test fly Boeing’s new Starliner capsule on its first crewed mission when they were unexpectedly marooned.
Despite the incident, Williams on Tuesday called her time with NASA “an incredible honor.”
“Anyone who knows me knows that space is my absolute favorite place to be,” she said in a statement.
Boeing’s new Starliner developed propulsion issues while Williams and Wilmore were traveling to the International Space Station (ISS) and it was deemed unfit to fly back.
The technical problems prompted NASA to entrust the return of their astronauts to Elon Musk’s SpaceX, snubbing Boeing.
The two veteran astronauts finally returned safely back to Earth with SpaceX in March 2025. Wilmore announced his retirement in August that same year.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a statement on Tuesday that Williams had been a “trailblazer in human spaceflight,” adding that she shaped the “future of exploration through her leadership aboard the space station” and paved the way for commercial missions to low Earth orbit.
During her career, Williams logged 608 days in space — the second most cumulative time in space by a NASA astronaut, the agency said.
She also ranks sixth on the list of longest single spaceflights by an American due to the Starliner incident, NASA added.
Williams has completed nine spacewalks totaling 62 hours, the most spacewalk time by a woman and fourth-most on the all-time cumulative spacewalk duration list.
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