Scores Unaccounted For After Boat Carrying 200 Asylum Seekers Sinks near the coast of Gambia.
At least seven souls lost their lives and many others remain unaccounted for following a craft ferrying about 200 migrants trying to get to European shores overturned near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The boat overturned on Wednesday midnight close to Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Ninety-six people have been saved to date and a search is continuing for the remaining passengers who were on board the capsized craft that was en route to the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers trying to reach European nations.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Spanish archipelago in 2024 and estimates over 9,000 migrants perished during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy began a search-and-rescue operation, deploying several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that joined the effort, the defense officials confirmed.
Officials state a number of those who died are foreign nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven people who died were found, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Frequent Pathway
Gambia is a common pathway taken by asylum seekers attempting to enter European countries, typically through perilous trips by sea and land.
In recent years, the EU has established pacts with a number of North African nations aimed at limiting undocumented migration.
