No fewer than seven individuals have died and many others are lost following a craft transporting approximately two hundred people seeking to enter Europe sank in waters near Gambia, authorities say.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight near Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were on board the sunken boat that was en route to the Spanish Canary Islands.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers attempting to get to the EU.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canaries in 2024 and estimates over nine thousand individuals have died during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy initiated a search-and-rescue operation, deploying multiple navy ships and a fishing boat that joined the effort, the military reported.
Officials state some of the deceased are not Gambian nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven people who died have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are described as being in critical condition and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
This West African nation is one of the routes used by migrants attempting to enter Europe, typically through perilous trips over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has established pacts with a number of North African nations with the goal of limiting undocumented migration.
