No fewer than seven people have died and numerous others are missing after a craft ferrying around two hundred migrants attempting to reach the European continent sank near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The craft flipped in the early hours of Thursday close to the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was later found "stranded on a sandbar", the Gambian military authorities said in a statement.
Ninety-six people were pulled to safety and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were aboard the shipwrecked vessel that was bound for the Spanish Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers attempting to get to Europe.
Close to 47,000 people reached the Canary Islands in 2024 and figures suggest in excess of nine thousand individuals have died trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces began a search-and-rescue operation, using several naval vessels and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the defense officials confirmed.
Authorities say several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The remains of the seven people who died were found, and a dozen of the saved are reported to be in critical condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Common Migration Route
The Gambia is a common pathway taken by migrants attempting to enter European countries, frequently via hazardous voyages over water and land.
Recently, the European Union has reached agreements with a number of Maghreb states designed to curtailing undocumented migration.
