At least seven individuals have died and a significant number remain unaccounted for following a craft carrying around 200 migrants seeking to enter European shores sank off the coast of the Gambian coast, officials state.
The boat overturned in the early hours of Thursday in the vicinity of Jinack village in the North Bank area and it was afterwards located "stranded on a sandbar", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Nearly one hundred people have been rescued so far and a rescue operation continues for those still missing who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was bound for the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers trying to reach European nations.
Almost 47,000 people made it to the Canary Islands in last year and figures suggest more than 9,000 migrants have lost their lives during the journey.
Search and Rescue Efforts
In the aftermath of the disaster, Gambia's naval forces began a search-and-rescue operation, using multiple navy ships and a commercial fishing craft that offered help, the defense officials confirmed.
Officials state some of the deceased are not from The Gambia and that their identities are still being verified.
The deceased of the seven individuals who died have been retrieved, and a dozen of the saved are said to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.
An Established Corridor
Gambia is one of the routes taken by migrants trying to reach European countries, frequently via perilous trips across ocean and terrain.
In recent years, the European bloc has reached agreements with several Maghreb states aimed at reducing illegal migration.
