A minimum of seven individuals have died and a significant number are lost following a craft carrying about 200 migrants trying to get to Europe overturned in waters near Gambia, officials state.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack village in the North Bank area and it was afterwards located "beached on a shoal", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for those still missing who were traveling on the capsized craft that was en route to Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers trying to reach Europe.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Canary Islands in the year 2024 and figures suggest in excess of nine thousand individuals have lost their lives during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
After Wednesday's accident, The Gambian Navy launched a rescue mission, involving a number of military boats and a fishing boat that came to assist, the military reported.
Officials state a number of those who died 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 ten of the survivors are described as being in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Frequent Pathway
Gambia is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter European countries, frequently via perilous trips by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with multiple Maghreb states designed to reducing undocumented migration.
