No fewer than seven people have died and many others are lost following a vessel ferrying approximately two hundred people seeking to enter the European continent capsized in waters near Gambia, officials state.
The vessel capsized late Wednesday night in the vicinity of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry said in a statement.
Nearly one hundred people were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were traveling on the capsized craft that was en route to the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African migrants trying to reach European nations.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Spanish archipelago in 2024 and data indicates over nine thousand individuals perished during the journey.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, Gambia's naval forces initiated a search operation, using several naval vessels and a fishing boat that offered help, the military said.
Officials state several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The deceased of the seven people who perished at sea have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are described as being in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter Europe, typically through hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
In recent years, the EU has forged deals with a number of North African nations designed to curtailing irregular migration.
