A minimum of seven souls have died and many others are missing after a vessel carrying approximately 200 migrants trying to get to the European continent overturned near the shoreline of Gambia, officials state.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday near Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was subsequently discovered "stranded on a sandbar", the nation's defense ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people were pulled to safety and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers attempting to get to European nations.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Spanish archipelago in the year 2024 and data indicates more than 9,000 migrants perished trying.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, Gambia's naval forces initiated a rescue mission, using several naval vessels and a commercial fishing craft that came to assist, the defense officials said.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their identities are still being verified.
The deceased of the seven people who drowned have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is one of the routes taken by asylum seekers trying to reach the EU, frequently via hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has forged deals with several North African nations aimed at curtailing irregular migration.
