No fewer than seven individuals have perished and numerous others are lost after a vessel transporting about two hundred migrants trying to get to the European continent sank near the shoreline of Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped in the early hours of Thursday close to the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
96 individuals have been saved to date and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were on board the shipwrecked vessel that was en route to the Spanish Canary Islands.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for migrants from Africa seeking entry into the EU.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and data indicates in excess of 9,000 migrants have died trying.
Rescue Operation
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy initiated a search-and-rescue operation, deploying multiple navy ships and a fishing vessel that offered help, the defense officials reported.
Reports indicate several of the victims are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven individuals who perished at sea have been recovered, and 10 of those rescued are described as being in serious condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is a frequent corridor taken by migrants attempting to enter the EU, typically through perilous trips across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has forged deals with multiple North African countries with the goal of curtailing illegal migration.
