No fewer than seven individuals have perished and a significant number are missing following a vessel carrying about 200 migrants trying to get to the European continent capsized near the shoreline of The Gambia, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for the remaining passengers who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African migrants trying to reach Europe.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and estimates over nine thousand individuals perished in the attempt.
Ongoing Mission
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy initiated a search-and-rescue operation, deploying multiple navy ships and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the military reported.
Authorities say some of the deceased are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven people who perished at sea have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are described as being in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is a common pathway used by migrants seeking to get to the EU, often on hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
In recent years, the EU has established pacts with a number of North African countries with the goal of reducing irregular migration.
