68 Migrants Die as Boat Capsizes Off Yemen
Tragic shipwreck leaves 74 missing, 12 survivors.
A boat carrying 154 Ethiopian migrants capsized off Yemen’s southern coast in the Gulf of Aden near Abyan province on Sunday, killing at least 68 people, with 74 others missing, according to the International Organization for Migration (IOM). Abdusattor Esoev, IOM’s Yemen head, reported that 54 bodies washed ashore in Khanfar district, while 14 were found dead and taken to a hospital morgue in Zinjibar, Abyan’s capital. Only 12 survivors were rescued from the disaster.
Local authorities launched an extensive search and rescue operation after discovering numerous bodies along the coastline. The incident marks the latest in a series of maritime tragedies, with the IOM noting four similar boat capsizings off Yemen and Djibouti in March, resulting in two deaths and 186 missing.
Despite Yemen’s decade-long civil war, it remains a key transit route for East African and Horn of Africa migrants seeking work in Gulf Arab nations. Smugglers often use overcrowded, unsafe vessels, leading to frequent deadly incidents. The IOM reported a decline in migrant arrivals to Yemen in 2024, with 60,000 compared to 97,200 in 2023, attributed to increased regional water patrols.
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