68 refugees and migrants killed, several missing as boat sinks off Yemen
PTC News Desk: A boat carrying 154 migrants capsized in waters off the coast of Yemen on Sunday killing 68 African migrants while 74 are missing, the United Nations’ migration agency confirmed.
Abdul Qadir Bajameel, a senior health official in the province, said only 10 survivors had been rescued so far — nine of them Ethiopian nationals and one Yemeni. "Dozens remain unaccounted for," he added, while rescue operations continued late into the night.
Local media reported that rescue teams were still searching for bodies and possible survivors.
The vessel, with 154 Ethiopian migrants on board, sank in the Gulf of Aden off the southern Yemeni province of Abyan early Sunday, Abdusattor Esoev, head of the International Organization for Migration in Yemen told The Associated Press.
The International Organisation for Migration (IOM) has repeatedly cautioned about the risks involving sea route between the Horn of Africa and Yemen. Migrants belonging to Ethiopia and Somalia often attempt dangerous routes with hopes of reaching Saudi Arabia or other Gulf nations in search of work.
"This is one of the world’s busiest and most perilous mixed migration routes," the IOM said in a statement.
- With inputs from agencies
