A minimum of seven people have died and a significant number are missing following a boat ferrying around 200 migrants attempting to reach the European continent sank near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The craft flipped on Wednesday midnight close to Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "stranded on a sandbar", the Gambian military authorities stated in a release.
Ninety-six people have been saved to date and a rescue operation continues for other passengers who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers attempting to get to the EU.
Close to 47,000 people arrived at the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and estimates more than nine thousand individuals perished in the attempt.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces initiated a search operation, involving several naval vessels and a fishing boat that joined the effort, the defence ministry confirmed.
Reports indicate a number of those who died are foreign nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven people who perished at sea have been recovered, and 10 of those rescued are said to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is one of the routes used by asylum seekers trying to reach European countries, typically through hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Recently, the EU has forged deals with a number of Maghreb states with the goal of reducing illegal migration.
