109 Migrants, Including 15 Children, Dead After Boat Capsizes Off Yemen, IOM Says

Reuters

Migrants give signals to NGO Proactiva Open Arms Uno rescue boat in central Mediterranean Sea, 17 August 2022.

At least 109 migrants, including 15 children, have died and more than 116 remain missing after a boat carrying around 305 people capsized while travelling from Djibouti to Yemen, the United Nations’ International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Sunday.

The boat capsized near Guhere, north of Obock — a port town in Djibouti — during the night of 8–9 October, the IOM said, citing survivor accounts.

More than 80 people survived the shipwreck, all Ethiopian nationals, the statement said. 

Among the 109 bodies recovered after the boat capsized, 52 are men, 42 women and 15 children including nine girls and six boys, the IOM said.

"Our teams are on the ground alongside local authorities to provide emergency assistance," said IOM Chief of Mission in Djibouti Alexandre Coissac.

"This tragedy is a stark reminder of the dangers faced by migrants along this migration corridor as they seek economic opportunities," Coissac said.

Djiboutian authorities are continuing search and rescue operations, the IOM statement said, ‌adding ⁠that local authorities are also providing medical care to survivors and arranging burials for the deceased.

Yemen is witnessing its most serious escalation in fighting between Saudi-backed government forces and the Iran-backed Houthis since a UN-brokered truce largely halted cross-border attacks in 2022. The renewed conflict could reshape territorial control in Yemen, with potential implications for shipping through the Red Sea.

IOM described the crisis sparked by the fighting as alarming, with displacement figures surging ⁠to 200,000 from 76,000 in mid-September, according to data released by the IOM last week.

More than 3,700 people have fled Yemen by sea to Djibouti as of last ⁠week, according to the IOM.



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