Numerous People Missing Following Vessel Holding Two Hundred Migrants Capsizes off the Gambian coast.
A minimum of seven individuals have died and numerous others are lost in the wake of a craft transporting about 200 migrants seeking to enter the European continent overturned near the shoreline of Gambia, authorities say.
The boat overturned late Wednesday night near Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was afterwards located "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Ninety-six people have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was en route to the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African migrants attempting to get to Europe.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and figures suggest more than 9,000 migrants have died in the attempt.
Ongoing Mission
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy initiated a rescue mission, deploying a number of military boats and a commercial fishing craft that offered help, the defence ministry confirmed.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven individuals who perished at sea have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are said to be in critical condition and getting immediate medical attention.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is one of the routes used by asylum seekers trying to reach the EU, often on perilous trips over water and land.
Over the past few years, the EU has established pacts with multiple North African nations aimed at limiting irregular migration.
