Dawn breakout at Kedah detention depot holding Rohingyans

Six of those who fled the Sungai Bakap Immigration Detention Depot at about 4.30 am were killed on the spot after they were knocked down by vehicles at Km168 of the North-South Expressway (southbound) near Jawi, Nibong Tebal, as they dashed across the road in a desperate bid to outrun pursuing police and other enforcement authorities.

The police have mounted 13 roadblocks - four in Seberang Perai Selatan in Penang and four in Bandar Baharu and five in Kulim in Kedah - in their operation to track down the fugitives.

As of 8 pm, the police had rounded up 351 of the escapees as they continued with the expansive search for the remaining detainees.

All the escapees are illegal immigrants who were detained under the Immigration Act two years ago and who had been transferred from the Wawasan Camp in Langkawi to the depot in Jalan Besar Relau near the Penang-Kedah border.

The six who died in the road accidents comprised two men, two women, a boy and a girl.

Witnesses from the nearby Kampung Sungai Kechil said they tried to stop the detainees from leaving the village but failed as the escapees ran off towards the highway.

Bukit Aman Department of Internal Security and Public Order director Datuk Seri Hazani Ghazali said a 150-strong police search team was now tracking down the detainees still at large.

They include members of the Federal Reserve Unit (FRU) and General Operations Force (GOF) from the Penang, Kedah and Perak police contingents, he said.

"The FRU and GOF teams' operations will be coordinated by the respective state police chiefs," he told Bernama when contacted.

The drama unfolded at 4.30 am, after a riot involving 664 detainees broke out at the depot, during which time they tore down the barrier doors and grille with their bare hands.

Immigration director-general Datuk Seri Khairul Dzaimee Daud said there was no evidence at the scene that the detainees had used any form of tools to break down the doors and grille.

In the wake of the incident, Home Minister Datuk Seri Hamzah Zainudin ordered the police and the Immigration Department to conduct a thorough investigation, saying that all agencies of the ministry have been deployed under an integrated operation to track down those still at large.

Hamzah also stressed that Malaysia does not recognise the refugee status of Rohingyans and their presence in the country was purely based on humanitarian grounds.

As such, all parties, including foreign nationals, must adhere to Malaysia's laws, he said.

"To preserve the sovereignty and interests of Malaysians, stern action, without compromise, will be taken against any party violating the country's laws," he said.