Dozens Lost Following Vessel Carrying 200 Migrants Capsizes off The Gambia.
At least seven people lost their lives and numerous others are missing after a craft ferrying approximately 200 migrants attempting to reach Europe sank off the coast of the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The boat overturned late Wednesday night close to the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was afterwards located "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people have been saved to date and a search is continuing for the remaining passengers who were on board the sunken boat that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers attempting to get to Europe.
Almost 47,000 people reached the Canaries in the year 2024 and data indicates over 9,000 people perished during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy began a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing boat that offered help, the defense officials confirmed.
Officials state a number of those who died are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven victims who perished at sea have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are said to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
The Gambia is one of the routes utilized by migrants seeking to get to the EU, frequently via hazardous voyages over water and land.
Over the past few years, the EU has reached agreements with multiple North African nations designed to reducing undocumented migration.
