At least 109 dead, over 100 missing as migrant boat capsizes off Djibouti

At least 109 people, including 15 children, have died and more than 116 are missing after a boat capsized off the coast of Djibouti, according to the United Nations migration agency.

In a statement on Sunday, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) quoted survivors as saying that the incident happened near Guhere off Djibouti’s eastern coast facing the Gulf of Aden and the Bab al-Mandeb strait from Thursday night to before dawn on Friday.

The boat was heading from Djibouti to Yemen with more than 300 people on board. More than 80 people – all Ethiopians – survived the shipwreck while Djiboutian search and rescue operations continued.

“Our teams are on the ground alongside local authorities to provide emergency assistance,” IOM Chief of Mission in Djibouti Alexandre Coissac said, lamenting the “devastating loss of life”.

“This tragedy is a stark reminder of the dangers faced by migrants along this migration corridor as they seek economic opportunities.”

Crossing Bab al-Mandeb, a waterway that measures just 20km (12.4 miles) at its narrowest points between Djibouti and Yemen, is a popular but dangerous route for thousands of migrants from the Horn of Africa.

Many embark on this journey in search of employment and safety in Gulf countries, undeterred by the rising instability in the region due to the US-Israel war on Iran and the resumption of fighting in Yemen between government forces and Houthi fighters last month.

The IOM said it had recorded “more than 20,000 incoming movements to Djibouti from Ethiopia” since September 10. Last year, more than half a million people tried to move along this route into Yemen, and at least 900 people died or are missing, according to the agency.