A minimum of seven souls have perished and a significant number are lost following a boat transporting around 200 migrants attempting to reach Europe capsized off the coast of Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped late Wednesday night in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry stated in a release.
Ninety-six people were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was heading towards the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers attempting to get to European nations.
Almost 47,000 individuals arrived at the Canaries in 2024 and figures suggest more than nine thousand individuals have lost their lives trying.
Rescue Operation
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces began a search operation, deploying a number of military boats and a fishing boat that offered help, the defence ministry reported.
Authorities say a number of those who died are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The remains of the seven people who died have been retrieved, and 10 of those rescued are described as being in serious condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is a frequent corridor taken by migrants attempting to enter the EU, frequently via hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has reached agreements with multiple Maghreb states with the goal of curtailing irregular migration.
