39 migrants dead after boat sinks off Yemen: UN agency AFP By AFP | June 11, 2024 Share

A tragic incident off the coast of Yemen occurred when a boat carrying 260 migrants sank, resulting in 39 confirmed deaths, 150 missing individuals, and 71 survivors, according to the International Organisation for Migration (IOM). The nationalities of the migrants have not been specified.

This disaster is part of a larger pattern where tens of thousands of migrants from the Horn of Africa attempt the perilous journey across the Red Sea each year, aiming to reach the Gulf countries to escape conflict, natural disasters, or poor economic prospects. In April, two boats sank off the coast of Djibouti within a two-week span, leading to dozens of deaths. 

Since 2014, the IOM has recorded a total of 1,350 deaths on this migration route, excluding the casualties from this year. In 2023 alone, the organization documented at least 698 deaths, with 105 lost at sea. The IOM is currently providing immediate aid to the survivors of the recent sinking.

Migrants who reach Yemen often face additional dangers due to the ongoing civil war, which has plagued the country for a decade. Many of these migrants aim to eventually reach Saudi Arabia and other Gulf countries to find work as laborers or domestic workers.

In August, Human Rights Watch accused Saudi border guards of killing "at least hundreds" of Ethiopians attempting to cross from Yemen to Saudi Arabia between March 2022 and June 2023, sometimes using explosive weapons. Saudi Arabia has dismissed these allegations as "unfounded and not based on reliable sources."

Despite the numerous dangers, the number of migrants arriving in Yemen has increased significantly, tripling from approximately 27,000 in 2021 to over 90,000 in 2023, according to the IOM.