Dozens Missing After Vessel Holding Two Hundred Migrants Goes Down off the Gambian coast.
A minimum of seven individuals have perished and a significant number are lost following a vessel carrying approximately 200 migrants attempting to reach the European continent capsized in waters near Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped late Wednesday night close to the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were traveling on the capsized craft that was bound for the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers trying to reach European nations.
Nearly 47,000 individuals made it to the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and data indicates over nine thousand individuals have died during the journey.
Rescue Operation
In the aftermath of the disaster, the navy initiated a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defence ministry reported.
Authorities say several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who perished at sea have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are described as being in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
An Established Corridor
The Gambia is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter European countries, often on perilous trips over water and land.
In recent years, the European Union has established pacts with a number of North African countries aimed at reducing illegal migration.
