Malaysian Rohingya Refugees Sosaity (MRS)

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia — Malaysian police say nearly 200 illegal immigrants from Vietnam and Myanmar have staged a riot in a botched attempt to break out of a detention centre while awaiting deportation.

Shukri Dahlan, the police chief of northern Terengganu state, told Malaysia's national news agency Bernama that eight Vietnamese detainees were injured in the incident late Saturday.

Another state police official says the detainees tried to break through the centre's entrance and threatened to set the facility on fire, but riot police forced them back inside. He did not have other details and spoke on condition of anonymity Sunday because he was not authorized to make public statements.