Gambian authorities announced they had recovered the bodies of at least seven victims from a capsized migrant boat in the Atlantic Ocean. The vessel was carrying over 200 people, according to testimonies, only about half of whom have been saved. It is unclear how many others remain missing or might be dead.
The Gambia's defence ministry said in a post on Facebook that naval forces managed to rescue 96 from the shipwreck, highlighting that 10 of the rescuees were in a critical condition and were being provided with urgent medical attention.
The boat is reported to have capsized around midnight on December 31, 2025, in the vicinity of Jinack Village in the North Bank Region.
The initial rescue "operation involved three naval speedboats and a coastal patrol vessel, with support from a local fishing canoe whose operators volunteered to assist in the rescue," the statement said.
The ministry added that officials had later deployed additional national resources to step up search and recovery efforts.
"Some of the victims have been identified as non-Gambians and authorities are working to verify their nationalities," the statement further specified, adding that further details would be shared at a later point.
The shipwrecked vessel was later found on a sandbank, having run aground.
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Gambian government resolute to stop irregular departures
The statement stressed that the Gambian government felt deeply troubled by the incident, stressing that it remained committed to deterring irregular immigration.
"The Government of The Gambia extends its sincere condolences to the bereaved families and all those affected by this unfortunate incident," the release said in closing.
Thousands of deaths on the Atlantic route
Africans nationals, in particular from the sub-Saharan part of the continent, continue to seek to leave their home countries in hopes of finding better opportunities elsewhere.
For the most part, they have been using the dangerous Atlantic route to reach Spain's Canary Islands archipelago, located more than 1,500 kilometers away.
Other African countries in the region — such as Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco — have started to cooperate more closely with the European Union as well as with individual European governments to curb migration, upping maritime controls in exchange for funds.
However, with these particular routes therefore becoming less attractive to prospective migrants, many have started looking for a launchpad even further south on the African continent, with the coast of The Gambia and Guinea becoming more sought after.
This is not the first shipwreck of this nature off the Gambian coast: Last August, at least 70 migrants were killed in a similar incident.
Boat accidents in the Atlantic Ocean have claimed thousands of lives in recent years, turning the Atlantic Ocean floor into a watery graveyard of migrants.
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with Reuters, AFP