The boat carrying 300 people left The Gambia and capsized near Nouakchott, according to the UN migration agency.
At least 15 people have died and more than 150 are missing after a boat carrying 300 passengers capsized near the Mauritanian capital Nouakchott, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said.
“Approximately 300 people boarded a pirogue in The Gambia and spent seven days at sea before the boat capsized near Nouakchott on July 22, 2024,” the IOM said. he said in a statement on Wednesday.
The United Nations migration agency said 120 people had been rescued by the Mauritanian Coast Guard as efforts continued to locate those missing.
“Among the survivors, 10 people were urgently taken to hospitals for medical care and four unaccompanied and separated children were identified,” the IOM said.
Ibba Sarr, a fishmonger at a seaside fish market in Nouakchott, said strong winds over the past two days had driven bodies closer to shore and he saw around 30 bodies being collected on the beach.
“Certainly other lifeless bodies will be discovered in the next two days,” Sarr told the Reuters news agency.
The Atlantic migration route, from the coast of West Africa to the Canary Islands, normally used by Africans seeking asylum or better job opportunities in Europe, is one of the deadliest in the world. Summer is the busiest period.
More than 19,700 people arrived in the Canary Islands using the Atlantic route between January 1 and July 15, 2024, representing a 160 percent increase compared to the same period last year, the IOM said.
But nearly 5,000 people have also died at sea in the first five months of 2024 trying to reach the Spanish archipelago, according to migration rights group Walking Borders.
Earlier this year, the European Union promised Mauritania financial support worth 210 million euros ($229 million) to combat migration and provide humanitarian aid.
But according to human rights groups and migration analysts, the 27-member bloc’s policy of outsourcing migration management through such agreements is unlikely to dissuade people fleeing conflict and economic instability from trying to enter the country. Europe and seek asylum.
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