At least 25 illegal migrants die after boat capsizes off Yemen

By Mohammed Sameai and Betul Yilmaz

SANAA, Yemen / ISTANBUL (AA) – At least 25 illegal African migrants were killed when a boat capsized off the coast of Yemen, local media said on Sunday.

The boat with dozens of migrants, mostly from Ethiopia, sank off the coast of Abyan province in southern Yemen at dawn due to bad weather conditions, a security source told Anadolu.

According to the Yemen Window news agency, the bodies of 25 Ethiopian migrants were retrieved from the shores of Shaqra and Zinjibar cities.

Rescue efforts for the other missing migrants are ongoing, the agency said.

According to the International Organization for Migration (IOM), more than 60,000 illegal migrants have arrived in Yemen in 2024 alone.

Yemen is a common destination for hundreds of illegal migrants from the Horn of Africa, particularly Somalia and Ethiopia, who undertake this perilous journey in hopes of reaching Gulf countries to seek better living conditions.