Scores Missing After Boat Transporting Two Hundred Migrants Goes Down near the coast of the Gambian coast.
No fewer than seven souls have perished and numerous others are missing in the wake of a vessel ferrying approximately 200 migrants attempting to reach Europe overturned off the coast of The Gambia, officials state.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "stranded on a sandbar", the country's defence ministry said in a statement.
Nearly one hundred people have been saved to date and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were traveling on the sunken boat that was bound for Spain's Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African migrants trying to reach Europe.
Nearly 47,000 individuals made it to the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and estimates more than 9,000 migrants perished trying.
Rescue Operation
After Wednesday's accident, Gambia's naval forces initiated a search operation, involving a number of military boats and a fishing boat that offered help, the defense officials reported.
Authorities say a number of those who died are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The deceased of the seven individuals who died have been recovered, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a frequent corridor utilized by migrants trying to reach the EU, typically through hazardous voyages by sea and land.
In recent years, the European bloc has established pacts with several North African nations aimed at limiting undocumented migration.
