A minimum of seven individuals have perished and many others remain unaccounted for after a craft carrying approximately two hundred people attempting to reach the European continent capsized near the shoreline of the Gambian coast, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized late Wednesday night in the vicinity of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry said in a statement.
96 individuals have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for the remaining passengers who were aboard the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic Ocean has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers attempting to get to the EU.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Canaries in the year 2024 and figures suggest in excess of 9,000 migrants have lost their lives trying.
Ongoing Mission
After Wednesday's accident, the navy began a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing vessel that came to assist, the defense officials reported.
Authorities say a number of those who died are not Gambian nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The deceased of the seven individuals who drowned have been retrieved, and ten of the survivors are described as being in serious condition and getting immediate medical attention.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is one of the routes taken by asylum seekers seeking to get to European countries, often on hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.
In recent years, the European bloc has established pacts with a number of North African countries aimed at limiting undocumented migration.
