A minimum of seven people have died and numerous others are lost following a vessel transporting about 200 migrants attempting to reach the European continent sank in waters near the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
96 individuals were pulled to safety and a hunt is ongoing for those still missing who were aboard the capsized craft that was heading towards Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers seeking entry into Europe.
Nearly forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and estimates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died in the attempt.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, The Gambian Navy initiated a search operation, involving multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defense officials said.
Reports indicate a number of those who died are not Gambian nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who perished at sea have been retrieved, and a dozen of the saved are described as being in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is one of the routes used by migrants seeking to get to the EU, often on dangerous journeys across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has established pacts with multiple North African nations with the goal of curtailing undocumented migration.
