Dozens Lost Following Vessel Carrying Two Hundred Asylum Seekers Capsizes near the coast of Gambia.
A minimum of seven souls lost their lives and many others remain unaccounted for following a craft transporting around 200 migrants trying to get to European shores overturned near the shoreline of Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack in the northern bank region and it was later found "stranded on a sandbar", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
96 individuals were pulled to safety and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was bound for the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers seeking entry into European nations.
Close to 47,000 individuals reached the Spanish archipelago in 2024 and estimates more than 9,000 people have died trying.
Ongoing Mission
After Wednesday's accident, the navy launched a search-and-rescue operation, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the defence ministry said.
Authorities say several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The remains of the seven victims who died were found, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is a frequent corridor used by asylum seekers trying to reach European countries, typically through hazardous voyages by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has established pacts with several North African countries with the goal of reducing undocumented migration.
