UN says 68 African migrants were killed when boat capsized off Yemen
The tragedy was the latest in a series of shipwrecks off Yemen that have killed hundreds of African migrants hoping to reach the wealthy Gulf Arab countries.
The vessel, with 154 Ethiopian migrants on board, sank off the southern province of Abyan early Sunday, Abdusattor Esoev, head of the International Organization for Migration in Yemen told The Associated Press.
He said the bodies of 54 migrants washed ashore in the district of Khanfar, and 14 others were found dead and taken to a hospital morgue in Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan on Yemen's southern coast.
Only 12 migrants survived the shipwreck, and the rest were missing and presumed dead, Esoev said.
Despite more than a decade of civil war, Yemen is a major route for migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach the Gulf Arab countries for work. Migrants are taken by smugglers on often dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden.
Hundreds of migrants have died or gone missing in shipwrecks off Yemen in recent months, including in March when two migrants died and 186 others were missing after four boats capsized off Yemen and Djibouti, according to the IOM.
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Business Insider
39 minutes ago
- Business Insider
World's 4th deadliest migration route strikes again, killing 68 illegal migrants from Africa
At least 68 African migrants have died and 74 others remain missing after an overcrowded boat carrying illegal migrants capsized off the coast of Yemen, highlighting the extreme dangers of the Eastern Route, a perilous migration corridor connecting the Horn of Africa to the Gulf that is ranked as the fourth deadliest in the world. At least 68 African migrants have died and 74 others remain missing following a boat capsizing off Yemen's coast. The vessel, departing from Somalia with 154 Ethiopian migrants, was en route to the Gulf when it overturned. This tragedy highlights the risks of irregular migration routes driven by poverty, conflict, and limited opportunities. Despite more than 2,100 recorded deaths and disappearances along this fourth deadliest route globally, migrants continue to brave the journey, driven by poverty, conflict, and the hope of finding economic opportunity in Saudi Arabia and beyond. The overcrowded vessel, which had departed from Somalia with 154 Ethiopian migrants on board, was en route to one of the Gulf countries when it overturned near Yemen's Abyan province on Sunday. The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) confirmed that only 12 migrants survived the tragedy, while the bodies of 54 victims were recovered along the Khanfar coastline. Another 14 bodies were found at a different location and transported to a local morgue. Search efforts are ongoing to locate the remaining missing passengers. World's deadliest migration route Despite being ranked as the fourth deadliest migration corridor globally, the Eastern Route connecting the Horn of Africa to Yemen and onward to Gulf nations continues to lure thousands of desperate migrants each year. According to data from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), at least 2,116 deaths and disappearances have been recorded along this route between 2014 and September 2024. The Eastern Route trails behind the Mediterranean (30,354 deaths/missing), the Sahara Desert (6,316), and the Atlantic route to Spain's Canary Islands (4,828), yet it remains a critical and perilous passageway for migrants seeking better economic opportunities in the Gulf. Deadly migration routes fail to deter illegal migrants According to the IOM, more than 30,000 people have died or gone missing between 2014 and September 2024 along the Western, Central, and Eastern Mediterranean migration routes. Despite these alarming numbers, Africa's illegal migration corridors, especially the Eastern Route through Yemen to the Gulf, remain active, with a steady flow of desperate migrants risking their lives in search of better opportunities. Driven by poverty, conflict, and limited prospects at home, thousands continue to embark on perilous sea crossings aboard overcrowded boats, hoping to reach Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations. Economic hardship, fraudulent recruitment schemes, and the lure of quick escape push many towards these treacherous paths, often controlled by human traffickers who exploit migrants' vulnerabilities. Unfortunately, these journeys frequently end in tragedy, with fatalities and missing persons reported with disturbing regularity. The latest deadly shipwreck off Yemen's coast further reveals the growing dangers associated with irregular migration through the Eastern Route. Migration experts caution that as long as root causes such as poverty, insecurity, and lack of economic opportunities persist, many will continue to take life-threatening risks.
an hour ago
The UN says 68 African migrants were killed when a boat capsized off Yemen
CAIRO -- A boat capsized Sunday in waters off Yemen's coast leaving 68 African migrants dead and 74 others missing, the U.N.'s migration agency said. The tragedy was the latest in a series of shipwrecks off Yemen that have killed hundreds of African migrants fleeing conflict and poverty in hopes of reaching the wealthy Gulf Arab countries. The vessel, with 154 Ethiopian migrants on board, sank in the Gulf of Aden off the southern Yemeni province of Abyan early Sunday, Abdusattor Esoev, head of the International Organization for Migration in Yemen told The Associated Press. He said the bodies of 54 migrants washed ashore in the district of Khanfar, and 14 others were found dead and taken to a hospital morgue in Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan on Yemen's southern coast. Only 12 migrants survived the shipwreck, and the rest were missing and presumed dead, Esoev said. In a statement, the Abyan security directorate described a massive search-and-rescue operation given the large number of dead and missing migrants. It said many dead bodies were found scattered across a wide area of the shore. Despite more than a decade of civil war, Yemen is a major route for migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach the Gulf Arab countries for work. Migrants are taken by smugglers on often dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden. Hundreds of migrants have died or gone missing in shipwrecks off Yemen in recent months, including in March when two migrants died and 186 others were missing after four boats capsized off Yemen and Djibouti, according to the IOM. More than 60,000 migrants arrived in Yemen in 2024, down from 97,200 in 2023, probably because of greater patrolling of the waters, according to an IOM report in March.
UPI
2 hours ago
- UPI
At least 68 migrants killed, many missing after boat sinks off Yemen
A NASA archive image of the southern Yemeni coast on the Gulf of Aden where Sunday's deadly migrant boat sinking occurred with the narrow entrance to the Red Sea shown at far left. File photo NASA/UPI | License Photo Aug. 4 (UPI) -- Dozens of migrants were killed off the coast of Yemen after their vessel went down in the Gulf of Aden in bad weather. At least 68 people died and many more are missing after the boat capsized and sank late Sunday with 157 mostly Ethiopian nationals on board off the southern province of Abyan, the International Organization for Migration said. The IOM's Yemen chief, Abdusattor Esoev, said a major search and rescue operation by provincial authorities had plucked 12 survivors from the sea. Abyan officials said a large number of bodies had washed up on the coast of the province. They said the vessel was overloaded. "The bodies of the dead and at least a dozen survivors, including two Yemeni smugglers, were taken to hospitals in Abyan," Abdul Kader Bajamel, a health official in the Abyan town of Zinjibar, told The New York Times. "Because the hospital's morgues could not accommodate this large number of bodies, and to avoid an environmental crisis, the governor of Abyan ordered the immediate burial of the dead and formed an emergency committee to search for the missing." A health official in Khanfar district said the remains of one migrant had been brought to the hospital there and doctors had treated 11 survivors, all of whom had since been discharged. Calling for more protection for migrants and safe legal routes to prevent them falling into the hands of people-smuggling gangs, Esoev said the stricken boat was making a perilous journey in waters routinely used by smugglers. "What we are advocating for all member states is to enhance their regular pathways so people can take legal ways in order to migrate, instead of being trapped or deceived by smugglers and taking those dangerous journeys," he said. IOM said the so-called Eastern Route moving migrants from countries in the Horn of Africa, including Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia, to Gulf countries, for which Yemen is the gateway, was one of "busiest and riskiest migration routes in the world," with 60,000 making the journey last year. Once migrants reach Yemen, they try to cross into Saudi Arabia to find employment and go underground in a huge grey economy in the oil-rich Gulf states. More than 180 migrants were killed in March after two vessels sank in the Red Sea off the coastal town of Dhubab in western Yemen. The only survivors were two members of the crew. IOM said it had documented the deaths or disappearance of more than 3,400 migrants undertaking the Eastern Route since 2014, of whom 1,400 had drowned. Yemen is in the midst of a decade-long internal conflict that has seen the country carved up among several factions, notably Iran-backed Houthi rebels who seized control from the internationally recognized government, which in turn was, and continues to be, backed by a Saudi-led, U.S.-backed military coalition trying to restore it to power. The fighting triggered one of the worst of the world's worst humanitarian crises, with almost 20 million people in need of food, medical and other assistance, more than half of them children, and more than 4.5 million people internally displaced, according to UNICEF.
