logo
At least 68 dead after migrant boat sinks off Yemen

At least 68 dead after migrant boat sinks off Yemen

DUBAI: A shipwreck off Yemen has killed at least 68 people, the UN's migration agency said Monday, with dozens still missing after the boat carrying mostly Ethiopians sank.
The International Organization for Migration's country chief of mission, Abdusattor Esoev, told AFP that "as of last night, 68 people aboard the boat were killed, but only 12 out of 157 have been rescued so far. The fate of the missing is still unknown."
On Sunday, two security sources in southern Yemen's Abyan province -- a frequent destination for migrant smuggling boats -- gave a preliminary toll of 27 killed in the shipwreck.
Despite the war that has ravaged Yemen since 2014, the impoverished country has remained a key transit point for irregular migration, in particular from Ethiopia which itself has been roiled by ethnic conflict.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

Indus water drying, 12 lakh people moved out: Pakistan's river-dependent region faces existential crisis
Indus water drying, 12 lakh people moved out: Pakistan's river-dependent region faces existential crisis

Time of India

time15 hours ago

  • Time of India

Indus water drying, 12 lakh people moved out: Pakistan's river-dependent region faces existential crisis

Thousands of families in Pakistan's Indus delta are being forced to leave their homes as rising seawater destroys farmland and fishing areas. Communities like Abdullah Mirbahar in Kharo Chan, located just 15 kilometres from where the Indus River meets the Arabian Sea, are now almost abandoned due to saltwater intrusion, an AFP report stated. Villages disappear under seawater Kharo Chan once had about 40 villages. Most of them have now disappeared. In 1981, the town had a population of 26,000. By 2023, that number had dropped to 11,000. Habibullah Khatti, a resident of Abdullah Mirbahar, is among those preparing to leave. 'The saline water has surrounded us from all four sides,' he told AFP. Productivity Tool Zero to Hero in Microsoft Excel: Complete Excel guide By Metla Sudha Sekhar View Program Finance Introduction to Technical Analysis & Candlestick Theory By Dinesh Nagpal View Program Finance Financial Literacy i e Lets Crack the Billionaire Code By CA Rahul Gupta View Program Digital Marketing Digital Marketing Masterclass by Neil Patel By Neil Patel View Program Finance Technical Analysis Demystified- A Complete Guide to Trading By Kunal Patel View Program Productivity Tool Excel Essentials to Expert: Your Complete Guide By Study at home View Program Artificial Intelligence AI For Business Professionals Batch 2 By Ansh Mehra View Program With fish stocks falling, Khatti turned to tailoring, but even that work became unsustainable. 'In the evening, an eerie silence takes over the area,' he said, as dogs roamed empty bamboo homes. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 20 Pieces of Clothing Older Women should Avoid Learn More Undo Mass migration from the delta The Pakistan Fisherfolk Forum says tens of thousands of people from coastal districts have already left. A study by the Jinnah Institute in March said over 1.2 million people have moved from the Indus delta region in the past 20 years. Water flow into the delta has dropped by 80 percent since the 1950s due to dams, irrigation canals, and climate change impacts, according to a 2018 study by the US-Pakistan Center for Advanced Studies in Water. This has led to a rise in seawater intrusion and soil salinity, making farming and fishing nearly impossible. Live Events 'The delta is sinking and shrinking' 'The delta is both sinking and shrinking,' said Muhammad Ali Anjum, a conservationist from WWF. A 2019 government study found that over 16 percent of fertile land in the delta is no longer usable due to saltwater. In towns like Keti Bandar, a white layer of salt covers the ground. Drinkable water has to be brought in by boats and delivered on donkeys. 'Who leaves their homeland willingly?' asked Haji Karam Jat, who had to rebuild his home farther inland. 'A person only leaves their motherland when they have no other choice,' he told AFP. Impact on generations of livelihoods The Indus River flows from Tibet, through Kashmir and all of Pakistan, supporting nearly 80 percent of the country's farmland. Historically, the delta provided rich grounds for fishing, farming, mangroves, and wildlife. British colonial-era irrigation systems began diverting the river's flow. Recent military-led canal projects sparked protests from Sindh province farmers earlier this year and were halted. Government and UN launch restoration efforts In 2021, Pakistan's government and the United Nations introduced the 'Living Indus Initiative' to fight river degradation. Part of the plan is to restore the delta, address salinity, and protect local farming and ecosystems. The Sindh government also started a mangrove restoration project. While mangroves are recovering in some parts, other areas are being cleared for development and land grabbing. Rising tensions with India India recently withdrew from a 1960 water treaty with Pakistan, which governed the use of rivers in the Indus basin. It now threatens to build dams upstream. Pakistan has called this move 'an act of war,' raising fears of further reductions in river flow to the delta. (Based on AFP report)

Ancient Shiva temple Kalp Kedar buried under debris after Uttarkashi cloudburst
Ancient Shiva temple Kalp Kedar buried under debris after Uttarkashi cloudburst

Hindustan Times

time18 hours ago

  • Hindustan Times

Ancient Shiva temple Kalp Kedar buried under debris after Uttarkashi cloudburst

The ancient Kalp Kedar temple in Uttarkashi was buried in the debris brought over by the flash flood in the Kheer Ganga river. Residential buildings partially submerged in sludge after a cloudburst caused a massive mudslide in India's Uttarakhand state.(AFP) The temple remained buried under ground for many years, possibly due to a previous disaster, with only its tip visible over ground. Follow Uttarkashi cloudburst live updates. Built in the Kature style, the architecture of the Shiva temple is similar to that of Kedarnath Dham. An excavation led to its discovery in 1945. After digging several feet underground, an ancient Shiva temple was found whose structure was similar to Kedarnath temple. The temple was below the ground level and devotees had to go down to offer prayers in the temple. People say that some water from the Kheer Ganga would often drift onto the 'shivling' installed in the sanctum sanctorum of the temple and a path had been created for it. There are stone carvings outside the temple. The 'shivling' of the sanctum sanctorum is shaped like the back of Nandi, just like in Kedarnath temple.

A shipwreck off Yemen has killed 56 migrants and left 132 missing, U.N. says in revised figures
A shipwreck off Yemen has killed 56 migrants and left 132 missing, U.N. says in revised figures

The Hindu

timea day ago

  • The Hindu

A shipwreck off Yemen has killed 56 migrants and left 132 missing, U.N. says in revised figures

A boat carrying African migrants that capsized over the weekend off the coast of war-torn Yemen killed 56 and left 132 missing, the U.N. immigration agency said on Tuesday (August 6, 2025), revising casualty figures released earlier. It is the latest in a series of shipwrecks off Yemen that killed hundreds trying to reach wealthy Arab Gulf countries in the hope of a better life. The vessel had 200 people on board when it sank early on Sunday (August 3, 2025) off the coastal town of Shuqrah in Yemen's southern province of Abyan, the International Organization for Migration said in a statement. Authorities recovered 56 bodies, including 14 women, while 12 men were rescued as of Tuesday morning, the agency said. An operation to find those missing is underway, Abyan security directorate said on late Monday (August 4, 2025), adding that the body of the boat captain, a Yemeni citizen, was recovered among 14 others off Zinjibar, the provincial capital. 'This heartbreaking incident highlights the urgent need to address the dangers of irregular migration along the Eastern Route,' the IOM said. Initially, Abdusattor Esoev, IOM chief in Yemen, said on Sunday the boat carried 154 Ethiopian migrants, with 68 killed and 74 missing. In its Tuesday statement, IOM said more than 350 migrants died or went missing in shipwrecks so far this year along the Eastern Route, which migrants from the Horn of Africa use to reach Yemen. The actual figure is likely to be significantly higher, it said. Yemen has been a major transit point for African migrants fleeing conflicts and poverty. Smugglers often take them on dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or the Gulf of Aden. Tens of thousands of migrants arrive in Yemen every year, despite being one of the poorest Arab countries and mired in a civil war for more than a decade. More than 60,000 migrants arrived there in 2024, according to the IOM.

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store