Numerous People Lost Following Boat Holding Two Hundred Asylum Seekers Capsizes near the coast of Gambia.
At least seven people have perished and many others remain unaccounted for following a boat ferrying around two hundred people seeking to enter the European continent capsized off the coast of Gambia, reports confirm.
The craft flipped on Wednesday midnight in the vicinity of Jinack village in the North Bank area and it was subsequently discovered "stranded on a sandbar", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were traveling on the sunken boat that was bound for the Spanish Canary Islands.
The perilous journey over the the Atlantic has become an increasingly common route for African asylum seekers trying to reach the EU.
Nearly 47,000 individuals reached the Canary Islands in last year and figures suggest in excess of nine thousand individuals perished in the attempt.
Rescue Operation
In the aftermath of the disaster, The Gambian Navy began a rescue mission, deploying several naval vessels and a fishing boat that joined the effort, the defense officials reported.
Reports indicate several of the victims are not Gambian nationals and that their nationalities are still under confirmation.
The bodies of the seven individuals who perished at sea were found, and 10 of those rescued are said to be in critical condition and undergoing emergency treatment.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a common pathway used by migrants seeking to get to the EU, often on perilous trips by sea and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with a number of North African nations designed to curtailing illegal migration.
