A boat carrying 260 Somali and Ethiopian migrants sank off the coast of Yemen on Monday, killing at least 49 people and leaving 140 others missing, the United Nations’ International Migration Agency said on Tuesday. .
71 people survived the sinking boat, according to a news release from the International Migration Agency.
Six children are among the rescued, while another six children and 31 women are among the dead.
The boat was accompanied by 115 Somalis and 145 Ethiopians, according to IOM.
Every year tens of thousands of migrants from the Horn of Africa cross the Red Sea to reach the oil-rich Gulf, fleeing conflict and the poor economy in their home countries.
The IOM says it has recorded 1,350 deaths on the sea migration route since 2014, not including this year. In 2023 alone, it said it recorded at least 698 deaths.
