A minimum of seven people have died and many others are lost following a boat carrying about two hundred migrants trying to get to European shores overturned near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was subsequently discovered "stranded on a sandbar", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Nearly one hundred people have been saved to date and a search is continuing for those still missing who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers attempting to get to the EU.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Canary Islands in 2024 and figures suggest more than 9,000 migrants perished in the attempt.
Rescue Operation
In the aftermath of the disaster, the navy initiated a search operation, using multiple navy ships and a fishing boat that came to assist, the defence ministry reported.
Officials state some of the deceased are not from The Gambia 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 described as being in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is a frequent corridor utilized by asylum seekers trying to reach European countries, frequently via perilous trips by sea and land.
Recently, the EU has forged deals with multiple North African nations designed to curtailing undocumented migration.
