Scores Missing After Craft Holding Two Hundred Asylum Seekers Capsizes off the Gambian coast.
No fewer than seven souls lost their lives and many others remain unaccounted for following a craft carrying around 200 migrants attempting to reach Europe sank off the coast of Gambia, officials state.
The boat overturned on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the country's defence ministry said in a statement.
Nearly one hundred people were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were on board the capsized craft that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic Ocean has grown into a more frequent path for migrants from Africa seeking entry into European nations.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and estimates over 9,000 migrants perished trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
After Wednesday's accident, Gambia's naval forces began a search-and-rescue operation, involving multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the military confirmed.
Officials state a number of those who died are not Gambian nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The deceased of the seven individuals who drowned were found, and a dozen of the saved are reported to be in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
The Gambia is a common pathway used by migrants trying to reach European countries, often on perilous trips over water and land.
In recent years, the EU has forged deals with a number of North African countries designed to curtailing undocumented migration.
