Dozens Lost After Craft Transporting 200 Asylum Seekers Capsizes off The Gambia.
No fewer than seven individuals lost their lives and a significant number are lost after a vessel carrying about two hundred migrants seeking to enter Europe capsized in waters near the Gambian coast, reports confirm.
The vessel capsized on Wednesday midnight near Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "beached on a shoal", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a hunt is ongoing for other passengers who were on board the sunken boat that was heading towards the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic Ocean has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers attempting to get to Europe.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants made it to the Canary Islands in last year and figures suggest in excess of 9,000 people have died in the attempt.
Rescue Operation
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces launched a rescue mission, deploying a number of military boats and a fishing vessel that came to assist, the defense officials reported.
Reports indicate several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven victims who perished at sea have been retrieved, and 10 of those rescued are reported to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is a common pathway taken by asylum seekers seeking to get to Europe, frequently via hazardous voyages over water and land.
Recently, the European Union has reached agreements with a number of North African nations aimed at limiting undocumented migration.