UN chief says save migrants

YANGON, Myanmar — U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on Saturday urged Southeast Asian nations to deal with the causes behind a growing humanitarian crisis that has forced thousands of people from Myanmar and Bangladesh to flee by sea, leaving many still stranded in boats.

Ban said he has been discussing the emergency with regional leaders in Myanmar, Malaysia and Thailand, among others, and urged them to provide search and rescue operations and options for resettlement and reintegration.

"It's important to save human lives," Ban said on a visit to Hanoi, Vietnam. But he also said it was important not to send the migrants back to dangerous situations in their home countries.

More than 3,600 people — about half of them from Bangladesh and the others minority Rohingya Muslims from Myanmar — have landed ashore in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand since May 10. Thousands more are believed to be trapped at sea, and the United Nations has warned that time is running out.

Four Malaysian navy ships began searching for boats Friday, according to navy chief Abdul Aziz Jaafar, who said three helicopters and three other ships were on standby. The Malaysian search is a positive step, but the operation is limited to Malaysia's territorial waters.

A spokesman for the U.S. Pentagon said Thursday that Washington was readying air patrols to aid in the search. A U.S. Embassy spokeswoman in Bangkok, Melissa Sweeney, told The Associated Press in an email Saturday that the offer of assistance was still awaiting clearance.

"We're actively engaging with the governments of the region to obtain their support and permissions for staging these flights," she said.

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