57 migrants dead as their ship sinks off Mauritanian Coast

SANAA, Dec. 5 (YPA) – Fifty-seven people were killed Thursday when a Gambian ship carrying about 150 migrants sank off the Mauritanian coast, the United Nations said.

“According to information provided by Mauritanian authorities, up to 57 people died after a ship carrying migrants sank off its coast,” Reuters quoted the UN migration agency as saying on Twitter.

“Survivors informed the crew of the International Organization for Migration (IOM) that the ship left the Gambia Yesterday with at least 150 people on board,” the IOM said.

The risky sea corridor from West Africa to Europe was previously a major route for migrants seeking jobs and a better life.

The incident is one of the most tragic since attempts were rare when Spain stepped up patrols in the mid-2000s.

E.M