Numerous People Missing Following Craft Transporting Two Hundred Asylum Seekers Capsizes off Gambia.
No fewer than seven individuals lost their lives and a significant number are lost in the wake of a vessel transporting approximately 200 migrants attempting to reach the European continent overturned in waters near The Gambia, authorities say.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was subsequently discovered "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry said in a statement.
96 individuals have been saved to date and a rescue operation continues for the remaining passengers who were aboard the sunken boat that was bound for Spain's Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers trying to reach the EU.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Canary Islands in 2024 and figures suggest more than 9,000 people perished trying.
Ongoing Mission
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces began a rescue mission, using a number of military boats and a commercial fishing craft that offered help, the military said.
Officials state some of the deceased are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who died have been recovered, and 10 of those rescued are described as being in critical condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Frequent Pathway
The Gambia is a frequent corridor taken by migrants attempting to enter the EU, often on perilous trips over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has reached agreements with a number of North African countries designed to reducing illegal migration.
