Each year thousands of the mostly Muslim Rohingya, heavily persecuted in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, risk their lives on long, expensive sea journeys, often in poor-quality vessels, in an attempt to reach Malaysia or Indonesia.

The wooden vessel arrived at around 5:30 pm on a beach in the province of Aceh, said police spokesman Winardy.

"One hundred and eighty-five Rohingya immigrants landed in Pidie. The figure consists of 83 adult males, 70 adult females and 32 children," Winardy said in a statement.

The refugees were temporarily sheltered at a local facility, with health workers treating those who were sick, Winardy added.

Some appeared very weak and thin and were put on drips by medical staff, according to AFP journalists.

A health worker told AFP some were "suffering from severe dehydration. Some children were vomiting."

Details on the length and conditions of their journey were not immediately available, but one young arrival said they had set off from Bangladesh.

"We came from a Rohingya refugee camp in Bangladesh in a hope that Indonesia will give us the opportunity of education," 14-year-old Umar Faruq said.

Marfian, a leader of a local fishing community on the scene not long after the refugees arrived, said that "some refugees landed in weak conditions". 

"When they were at the shoreline, locals helped by giving them food," Marfian said.

He noted that in recent years some Acehnese fishermen had helped Rohingya boats come ashore but the latest boat was carried to land by the wind, as fishermen had become more reluctant to help. 

Winardy underscored that authorities were coordinating on refugee response "considering their landing in Aceh has become more frequent".

Monday's boat landing in Aceh came a day after another vessel carrying 57 Rohingya refugees came ashore in the province after a month at sea.

In November, two boats carrying a total of 229 Rohingya landed in the same province, according to the United Nations refugee agency UNHCR.

Relatively affluent Malaysia is a favored destination for the refugees, but many land first in Muslim-majority Indonesia, seen as more welcoming.

UN agencies and human rights groups have called on states in the region for urgent help after several boats carrying Rohingya were reported adrift for weeks in the Indian Ocean. 

At least 20 Rohingya have died at sea in recent weeks, the UNHCR said on Tuesday, as boats carrying hundreds of the persecuted Muslims landed in Indonesia while others were believed to be adrift in the Indian Ocean.

Chris Lewa of the Arakan Project, which provides support to Rohingya, said the boat was the same as one earlier reported missing and feared to have sank.

The UNHCR on Monday said 2022 could be one of the deadliest years at sea in almost a decade for the Rohingya, as a growing number of them flee desperate conditions in refugee camps in Bangladesh.

The Rohingya have long been persecuted in Buddhist-majority Myanmar, which borders Bangladesh. For years many have fled to countries like Thailand, and Muslim-majority Malaysia and Indonesia between November and April when seas are calmer.

Nearly 1 million live in crowded conditions in Bangladesh, including many of the hundreds of thousands who fled a deadly crackdown by Myanmar's military in 2017.

Rights groups have recorded a significant increase in the number leaving the camps, from about 500 last year to an estimated 2,400 this year. It is not clear what is driving the larger exodus. Some activists believe the lifting of COVID restrictions around Southeast Asia, a favored destination for the Rohingya, could be a factor.

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