No fewer than seven souls lost their lives and a significant number are lost in the wake of a vessel ferrying around two hundred migrants attempting to reach European shores sank in waters near the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The vessel capsized late Wednesday night close to Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "stranded on a sandbar", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers seeking entry into Europe.
Nearly forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and estimates over nine thousand individuals have lost their lives trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
After Wednesday's accident, the navy initiated a rescue mission, deploying multiple navy ships and a fishing boat that offered help, the defence ministry reported.
Authorities say several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven individuals who drowned have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
A Frequent Pathway
The Gambia is a frequent corridor utilized by migrants seeking to get to Europe, often on hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has established pacts with a number of Maghreb states with the goal of reducing irregular migration.
