A minimum of seven souls lost their lives and a significant number remain unaccounted for in the wake of a craft transporting around two hundred migrants attempting to reach Europe overturned near the shoreline of The Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped on Wednesday midnight close to Jinack in the northern bank region and it was afterwards located "grounded on a sandbank", the nation's defense ministry said in a statement.
96 individuals were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were traveling on the sunken boat that was heading towards the Spanish Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for migrants from Africa attempting to get to the EU.
Close to forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Canaries in last year and data indicates more than nine thousand individuals have died trying.
Rescue Operation
Following the Wednesday incident, Gambia's naval forces launched a search operation, involving multiple navy ships and a fishing vessel that came to assist, the military said.
Officials state several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven victims who died have been retrieved, and 10 of those rescued are said to be in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Frequent Pathway
The Gambia is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter Europe, frequently via dangerous journeys over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European bloc has reached agreements with multiple North African countries with the goal of limiting undocumented migration.
