In brief
Overnight, a devastating maritime disaster occurred off the coast of Yemen and Djibouti, resulting in at least two confirmed deaths and 186 individuals reported missing. The International Organization for Migration (I.O.M.) provided details of the incident, stating that four boats, crucial for migrant transportation, capsized due to adverse weather conditions.
On the night of Thursday, March 6th, two vessels met their fate off Yemen, leading to the disappearance of 181 migrants and five Yemeni crew members. The search and rescue operations led to two crew members surviving the ordeal. Meanwhile, at the same time, two other boats capsized near Djibouti, with two bodies of migrants recovered, but all aboard those vessels were successfully saved.The I.O.M.’s spokesperson, Tamim Eleian, confirmed that strong winds played a significant role in the capsizing near Djibouti’s coastline. The boats were overloaded with individuals seeking a better life in Gulf nations. The unfortunate incident off Yemen’s Dhubab district involved 31 Ethiopian migrants and three Yemeni crew members on one boat, while the other boat headed for the Abyan governorate carried 150 Ethiopian migrants and four Yemeni crew members.Yemen remains a significant transit point for hundreds of thousands of migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa, seeking work opportunities in the Gulf region. Notably, the total number of migrants making this perilous journey increased to 97,200 in 2023, tripling numbers from 2021. A slight decrease to just under 61,000 in the previous year was attributed to heightened maritime patrols.Sadly, the route has seen at least 2,082 migrants go missing over the past decade, with 693 documented drownings. Currently, an estimated 380,000 migrants reside in Yemen, contributing to the ongoing humanitarian crisis in the region.
