At least seven people have perished and numerous others remain unaccounted for following a vessel ferrying around two hundred migrants seeking to enter European shores sank off the coast of Gambia, authorities say.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was afterwards located "stranded on a sandbar", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people were pulled to safety and a rescue operation continues for the remaining passengers who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was bound for Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for migrants from Africa seeking entry into Europe.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canaries in the year 2024 and estimates more than 9,000 migrants have lost their lives during the journey.
Rescue Operation
In the aftermath of the disaster, The Gambian Navy initiated a search operation, deploying a number of military boats and a fishing boat that offered help, the defense officials reported.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are foreign nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven people who drowned have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are said to be in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is one of the routes taken by asylum seekers seeking to get to Europe, often on dangerous journeys by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with multiple North African countries aimed at curtailing irregular migration.
