A minimum of seven people have perished and many others remain unaccounted for following a craft carrying around 200 people seeking to enter European shores overturned near the shoreline of Gambia, authorities say.
The boat overturned late Wednesday night in the vicinity of the village of Jinack in the North Bank area and it was subsequently discovered "beached on a shoal", the Gambian military authorities stated in a release.
Nearly one hundred people were pulled to safety and a search is continuing for other passengers who were aboard the capsized craft that was heading towards Spain's Canary Islands.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has emerged as a rising pathway for African asylum seekers trying to reach Europe.
Almost forty-seven thousand migrants reached the Canaries in last year and data indicates more than nine thousand individuals perished trying.
Search and Rescue Efforts
Following the Wednesday incident, the navy began a search-and-rescue operation, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing boat that came to assist, the defence ministry reported.
Authorities say 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 10 of those rescued are described as being in serious condition and receiving urgent medical care.
A Frequent Pathway
This West African nation is one of the routes utilized by migrants trying to reach Europe, typically through perilous trips by sea and land.
Recently, the EU has reached agreements with multiple Maghreb states designed to limiting illegal migration.
