Tens of thousands of refugees are trapped on the border into Bangladesh without basic food and medicine amid operations by the Myanmar military, which have already killed hundreds.
Satellite photos released by Human Rights Watch Saturday showed what they are desperate to escape -- entire villages torched to the ground in clashes between Myanmar's armed forces and local militants.
More than 73,000 Rohingyas have now fled across the border since August 25, the United Nations said Sunday.
But in northern Rakhine State there are reports of at least another 30,000 Rohingyas trapped in hilly terrain without basic supplies of food, water or medicine, according to activists.
The Rohingya, a Muslim minority in predominantly Buddhist Myanmar, are considered some of the most persecuted people in the world. Myanmar, also known as Burma, considers them Bangladeshi and Bangladesh says they're Burmese.
It is the second time in less than a year that a military crackdown has led to a mass exodus.
Unable to cross the Nafriver into Bangladesh and fearful to return to what's left of their homes, Rohingya activists say the refugees are stranded between Maungdaw and Rathedaung townships.
Videos provided to CNN by activists show dozens of men, women and children stranded on a mountain, surrounded by dense jungle, living in makeshift shelters made of sticks and sheets.
"The human lives that are most vulnerable must be rescued immediately without delay," executive director of Burma Human Rights Network, Kyaw Win, said in a statement.
The trapped refugees are just some of at least 100,000 Rohingyas who have been forced to flee their homes since August 25, after armed forces began "clearance operations" across Rakhine State.
The government blames "terrorists" for starting the violence. Rohingya militants killed 12 security officers in border post attacks two weeks ago, according to state media, intensifying the latest crackdown.
A top military official said the government was "taking great care in solving the (Rakhine State) problem."
Due to Myanmar's policy of shutting off all access to Rakhine state for the media, CNN is not able to verify any figures independently or any stories told by refugees.
Human Rights Watch renewed its calls for the Myanmar government to allow independent observers into Rakhine State, after releasing troubling satellite photos from inside the region.