Dozens Lost Following Vessel Transporting 200 Migrants Sinks off the Gambian coast.
A minimum of seven individuals have perished and many others are lost after a craft carrying around two hundred people seeking to enter the European continent overturned off the coast of the Gambian coast, reports confirm.
The craft flipped late Wednesday night near the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
Ninety-six people have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the capsized craft that was en route to the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African migrants seeking entry into European nations.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and data indicates over 9,000 migrants have lost their lives during the journey.
Rescue Operation
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy launched a search-and-rescue operation, involving several naval vessels and a fishing boat that offered help, the defense officials confirmed.
Authorities say some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven victims who perished at sea were found, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is one of the routes used by migrants seeking to get to Europe, frequently via hazardous voyages by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the EU has reached agreements with a number of North African nations designed to curtailing undocumented migration.
