Dozens of Migrants Drowned and Missing After Boat Sinks Off Yemen Coast
According to the latest report from the International Organization for Migration (IOM), at least 49 migrants have died, and 140 others are missing after their boat sank off the coast of Yemen. The tragic incident occurred on Monday, with the boat carrying 260 migrants at the time of the disaster.
In a statement released on Tuesday, the IOM confirmed that “at least 49 migrants have died, and 140 others are missing” following the sinking. The victims include 31 women and six children. The boat was transporting 115 Somali and 145 Ethiopian migrants.
Earlier, a brief statement from the IOM spokesperson on X (formerly Twitter) noted the tragic accident, reporting “39 dead, 150 missing, and 71 survivors” from the boat carrying 260 migrants. The IOM is providing immediate assistance to the survivors.
Part of a Deadly Trend
This incident is the latest in a series of fatal accidents along the so-called “Eastern Migration Route.” Each year, tens of thousands of African migrants undertake the perilous journey across the Red Sea and Yemen to reach Saudi Arabia, fleeing conflicts, natural disasters, or seeking better economic opportunities.
In April, two boats sank off the coast of Djibouti within two weeks, resulting in dozens of deaths. The IOM reported that since 2014, 1,350 people have died on this migration route, not including figures from the current year. In 2023 alone, the IOM documented at least 698 deaths on the same route, including 105 who went missing at sea.
Migrants who successfully reach Yemen often face further threats to their safety, as the poorest country in the Arabian Peninsula has been mired in civil war for nearly a decade. Many migrants aim to reach Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states to find work.
In August, Human Rights Watch accused Saudi border guards of killing “at least hundreds” of Ethiopians trying to cross into the kingdom from Yemen between March 2022 and June 2023, sometimes using explosive weapons. Saudi authorities dismissed the report’s findings as “baseless and unsubstantiated.”
A report published last week by the Mixed Migration Centre indicated that hospitals in Yemen continued to receive migrants injured in attacks along the border, with some killings still occurring.
The centre noted the difficulty in gathering comprehensive data, making it impossible to determine if the scale of killings had decreased compared to the previous year.
Despite potential central Saudi orders to curb or stop the killings, the report found that Ethiopian migrants were still being killed by Saudi security officials.
Despite the numerous dangers of the Eastern Migration Route, the IOM reported last month that the number of migrants arriving in Yemen tripled from 2021 to 2023, rising from about 27,000 to over 90,000.
