KUALA LUMPUR - A mass grave believed to contain bodies of Myanmar Rohingya migrants has been found by police in northern Malaysia, Malaysian Home Minister Ahmad Zahid Hamidi said on Sunday.
The grave was discovered last week by security forces dispatched to secure the area from human traffickers and illegal migrants, the minister said.
The country's police chief and his deputy had travelled to Padang Besar in the state of Perlis, 420 kilometres north of Kuala Lumpur.
A police forensics team was dispatched to investigate the around 100 bodies found, the Star newspaper reported.
The mass grave was found near abandoned human trafficking camps, the minister said, adding that he suspects Malaysians were involved.
"I recognise that as a fact.
"But we don’t know how many (bodies) there are. We are probably going to find more bodies," Hamidi told reporters.
In Thailand this month, authorities discovered several mass graves containing dozens of bodies thought to be of Rohingya and Bangladeshi migrants in the state of Songkhla, across the border from Perlis.
Sunday's find in Malaysia came amid international outcry over the thousands of Rohingya refugees thought to be adrift in South-East Asian waters.
Malaysia and Indonesia have both agreed to start search and rescue operations to find the migrants' boats.
Thailand has said it will help any boat in need of assistance.
Rohingya ethnic Muslims from the Myanmar state of Rakhine, bordering Bangladesh, are denied citizenship, and say discrimination and persecution drive them to flee the country with the help of smugglers.
The region will hold a multilateral meeting in Bangkok Friday to discuss the crisis.