Rohingya Muslims fleeing violence reached Bangladesh after days at sea, only to be turned away by border guards.

Thousands of Muslims have been escaping from Myanmar after dozens were killed in religious violence.

They are fleeing attacks in Rakhine state by the Buddhist majority. Many have tried to reach Bangladesh, where their ancestors are from.

However, some Rohingya who reached Bangladesh by boat were turned away by the border guards, who gave them a bottle of water and some food, and forced them back to sea, despite appeals from the UN.

PHOTO CAPTION

A Rohingya Muslim from Myanmar, who tried to cross the Naf river into Bangladesh to escape sectarian violence, cries in a Bangladeshi Coast guard station in Teknaf on June 19, before being sent back to Myanmar.

Al-Jazeera