A minimum of seven souls have died and numerous others are missing in the wake of a boat ferrying around 200 people trying to get to Europe sank in waters near Gambia, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the northern bank region and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
96 individuals have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were on board the capsized craft that was bound for the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers attempting to get to European nations.
Nearly forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Canaries in the year 2024 and estimates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, The Gambian Navy began a search-and-rescue operation, deploying several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defence ministry said.
Authorities say a number of those who died are not Gambian nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven victims who died have been retrieved, and a dozen of the saved are reported to be in critical condition and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a frequent corridor taken by asylum seekers trying to reach Europe, typically through dangerous journeys across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has forged deals with multiple North African countries with the goal of limiting irregular migration.
