A minimum of seven souls have perished and many others are missing following a boat ferrying about two hundred people attempting to reach Europe sank near the shoreline of Gambia, officials state.
The craft flipped in the early hours of Thursday in the vicinity of Jinack village in the North Bank Region and it was later found "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry announced officially.
Ninety-six people have been saved to date and a search is continuing for other passengers who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was en route to the Canary Islands of Spain.
The dangerous voyage over the the Atlantic has grown into a more frequent path for African asylum seekers trying to reach the EU.
Almost 47,000 individuals reached the Canary Islands in last year and figures suggest over nine thousand individuals have lost their lives trying.
Ongoing Mission
In the aftermath of the disaster, The Gambian Navy initiated a rescue mission, involving several naval vessels and a fishing boat that offered help, the defense officials confirmed.
Officials state some of the deceased are not Gambian nationals and that their identities are still being verified.
The bodies of the seven people who perished at sea were found, and 10 of those rescued are reported to be in grave health and receiving urgent medical care.
A Common Migration Route
Gambia is a frequent corridor taken by migrants attempting to enter Europe, often on dangerous journeys over water and land.
Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with a number of North African countries with the goal of reducing irregular migration.
