Numerous People Missing Following Boat Carrying Two Hundred Migrants Sinks in waters off The Gambia.
A minimum of seven people lost their lives and a significant number are lost in the wake of a vessel transporting approximately 200 people seeking to enter European shores overturned off the coast of The Gambia, reports confirm.
The boat overturned late Wednesday night in the vicinity of Jinack in the northern bank region and it was subsequently discovered "stranded on a sandbar", the Gambian military authorities stated in a release.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for the remaining passengers who were traveling on the capsized craft that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers attempting to get to European nations.
Close to 47,000 people reached the Canary Islands in last year and estimates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, The Gambian Navy began a search-and-rescue operation, deploying multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the military said.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The remains of the seven victims who drowned were found, and ten of the survivors are described as being in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is one of the routes used by asylum seekers attempting to enter the EU, often on hazardous voyages over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has established pacts with several Maghreb states with the goal of reducing irregular migration.
