A minimum of seven individuals have died and a significant number are missing following a craft transporting about two hundred migrants trying to get to European shores overturned off the coast of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The boat overturned late Wednesday night near Jinack in the North Bank area and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry said in a statement.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for other passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was en route to the Spanish Canary Islands.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African migrants seeking entry into Europe.
Nearly 47,000 people arrived at the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and figures suggest in excess of nine thousand individuals perished in the attempt.
Rescue Operation
In the aftermath of the disaster, Gambia's naval forces launched a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that joined the effort, the military said.
Authorities say several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The deceased of the seven people who perished at sea have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is a frequent corridor utilized by migrants seeking to get to the EU, typically through hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the EU has reached agreements with a number of Maghreb states with the goal of reducing irregular migration.
