A minimum of seven individuals lost their lives and numerous others are lost after a boat transporting approximately 200 migrants trying to get to European shores sank off the coast of The Gambia, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack village in the northern bank region and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities said in a statement.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was bound for the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for migrants from Africa seeking entry into European nations.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and figures suggest more than 9,000 migrants have died during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, The Gambian Navy launched a search operation, deploying a number of military boats and a fishing vessel that came to assist, the defence ministry confirmed.
Officials state several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven individuals who drowned have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in critical condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is a common pathway used by migrants seeking to get to European countries, often on hazardous voyages by sea and land.
In recent years, the European bloc has established pacts with multiple Maghreb states aimed at curtailing undocumented migration.
