13 migrants dead, 14 missing in shipwreck disaster off Yemeni coast

Cairo, Aug 25 (EFE).- At least 13 people have died, and 14 others remain missing after a boat carrying migrants from Djibouti sank off the coast of Yemen’s Taiz province, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said Sunday.

The organization said the boat, carrying 25 Ethiopians and two Yemenis, capsized near the Yemeni district of Bani Al Hakam on August 20.

Among the deceased are 11 men and two women.

“The bodies of the deceased were recovered along the shores of Bab-al Mandab near Al-Shura in the Dubab district,” the IOM said.

Search operations are ongoing in hopes of locating the remaining missing migrants and the Yemeni captain and his assistant. The cause of the shipwreck remains unclear at this stage.

“This latest tragedy is a stark reminder of the perils faced by migrants on this route,” said Matt Huber, acting chief of mission for IOM in Yemen.

“Every life lost in these dangerous waters is one too many, and it is imperative that we do not normalize these devastating losses and instead work collectively to ensure that migrants are protected and ed throughout their journeys.”

The migration route from the Horn of Africa to Yemen is one of the world’s most dangerous, with thousands crossing each year despite Yemen’s ongoing conflict and worsening conditions, IOM said.

According to IOM’s Displacement Tracking Matrix (DTM), over 97,000 migrants arrived in Yemen in 2023, suring the previous year’s figures.

However, as conflict intensifies in the host country, migrants are left stranded, with limited access to basic services and constant exposure to violence and exploitation.

Since 2014, IOM’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded 2,082 migrant deaths and disappearances on the Eastern Route, including 693 due to drowning.

“Despite these harrowing numbers, the international response remains severely underfunded,” the organization emphasized. EFE

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