Dozens Lost After Craft Carrying Two Hundred Asylum Seekers Capsizes near the coast of The Gambia.
At least seven souls lost their lives and many others are missing in the wake of a craft transporting about 200 migrants seeking to enter the European continent overturned near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, authorities say.
The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was later found "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for those still missing who were on board the sunken boat that was bound for Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic Ocean has emerged as a rising pathway for African migrants attempting to get to Europe.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants arrived at the Canary Islands in last year and figures suggest over nine thousand individuals have lost their lives during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy began a rescue mission, deploying multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that joined the effort, the military said.
Reports indicate some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their details are still being checked.
The bodies of the seven people who perished at sea were found, and a dozen of the saved are reported to be in grave health and getting immediate medical attention.
A Frequent Pathway
Gambia is a frequent corridor used by asylum seekers trying to reach the EU, typically through perilous trips across ocean and terrain.
Recently, the EU has established pacts with a number of Maghreb states aimed at curtailing illegal migration.
