No fewer than seven individuals have perished and many others are lost in the wake of a vessel ferrying about two hundred migrants seeking to enter Europe sank near the shoreline of Gambia, reports confirm.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry said in a statement.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was bound for the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers seeking entry into the EU.
Nearly 47,000 people reached the Canaries in 2024 and data indicates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
After Wednesday's accident, Gambia's naval forces launched a search operation, using a number of military boats and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defence ministry said.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The deceased of the seven victims who drowned have been retrieved, and a dozen of the saved are reported to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is a frequent corridor taken by migrants attempting to enter European countries, frequently via dangerous journeys across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the EU has established pacts with several North African nations designed to limiting illegal migration.
