No fewer than seven individuals have died and numerous others remain unaccounted for after a boat ferrying approximately two hundred migrants trying to get to Europe overturned near the shoreline of Gambia, authorities say.
The craft flipped on Wednesday midnight near Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was subsequently discovered "stranded on a sandbar", the nation's defense ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were traveling on the capsized craft that was bound for the Spanish Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers seeking entry into Europe.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canary Islands in 2024 and figures suggest in excess of nine thousand individuals perished trying.
Rescue Operation
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy began a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing boat that came to assist, the defense officials said.
Authorities say several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven people who died were found, and a dozen of the saved are said to be in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is a common pathway taken by asylum seekers attempting to enter the EU, often on dangerous journeys by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the EU has reached agreements with several North African nations designed to reducing undocumented migration.
