Scores Unaccounted For Following Craft Holding 200 Migrants Capsizes off The Gambia.
No fewer than seven souls have perished and a significant number are lost following a vessel carrying approximately 200 migrants attempting to reach European shores capsized near the shoreline of Gambia, reports confirm.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday near the village of Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was subsequently discovered "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities announced officially.
96 individuals were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were aboard the sunken boat that was en route to the Canary Islands of Spain.
The perilous journey over the Atlantic Ocean has grown into a more frequent path for African migrants attempting to get to the EU.
Nearly 47,000 people made it to the Canary Islands in last year and data indicates in excess of nine thousand individuals have died in the attempt.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, Gambia's naval forces began a search operation, involving multiple navy ships and a fishing vessel that joined the effort, the defense officials confirmed.
Authorities say several of the victims are foreign nationals and that their details are still being checked.
The remains of the seven people who died have been recovered, and ten of the survivors are reported to be in grave health and receiving urgent medical care.
An Established Corridor
This West African nation is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter the EU, often on dangerous journeys over water and land.
In recent years, the European Union has forged deals with a number of North African nations with the goal of curtailing illegal migration.
