76 dead, dozens missing after migrant boat sinks off Yemen
Yemeni security officials said 76 bodies had been recovered and 32 people rescued from the shipwreck in the Gulf of Aden. The UN's migration agency said 157 people were on board.
The incident occurred off Abyan governorate in southern Yemen, a frequent destination for boats smuggling African migrants hoping to reach the wealthy Gulf states.
Some of those rescued have been transferred to Yemen's Aden, near Abyan, a security official said.
UN agency the International Organization for Migration earlier gave a toll of at least 68 dead.
The IOM's country chief of mission, Abdusattor Esoev, said that "the fate of the missing is still unknown."
Despite the civil 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.
Each year, thousands brave the so-called "Eastern Route" from Djibouti to Yemen across the Red Sea, in the hope of eventually reaching oil-rich Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.
The IOM recorded at least 558 deaths on the Red Sea route last year, with 462 from boat accidents.
Last month, at least eight people died after smugglers forced migrants to disembark from a boat in the Red Sea, according to the UN's migration agency.
The vessel that sank off Abyan was carrying mostly Ethiopian migrants, according to the province's security directorate and an IOM source.
Yemeni security forces were conducting operations to recover a "significant" number of bodies, the Abyan directorate said.
On their way to the Gulf, migrants cross the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the narrow waterway at the mouth of the Red Sea that is a major route for international trade, as well as for migration and human trafficking.
Once in war-torn Yemen, the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, migrants often face other threats to their safety.
The IOM says tens of thousands of migrants have become stranded in Yemen and suffer abuse and exploitation during their journeys.
In April, more than 60 people were killed in a strike blamed on the United States that hit a migrant detention centre in Yemen, according to the Houthi rebels that control much of the country.
The wealthy Gulf monarchies host significant populations of foreign workers from South Asia and Africa.
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Irish Times
17 hours ago
- Irish Times
More than 60 people die as migrant boat sinks off Yemen, more missing
More than 60 migrants were killed when their overloaded boat capsized as they tried to cross the sea between the Horn of Africa and Yemen , the International Organization for Migration (IOM) has said. The boat trip across the Gulf of Aden is the first part of one of the most dangerous migration and smuggling routes in the world, which desperate men and women from Ethiopia and other East African countries traverse as they attempt to reach oil-rich Saudi Arabia. The boat, believed to have been carrying 150 people, capsized on Saturday night near the southern Yemeni province of Abyan, Yemini health and security officials said. The IOM said 68 Ethiopians had died. There were at least 12 survivors. An unknown number of passengers remain missing. The death toll is expected to rise as more bodies wash ashore, the local officials said. READ MORE 'This heartbreaking incident underscores the urgent need for enhanced protection mechanisms for migrants undertaking perilous journeys, often facilitated by unscrupulous smugglers who exploit desperation and vulnerability,' the IOM statement said. Abdul Kader Bajamel, a health official in Zinjibar, said, 'The bodies of the dead and at least a dozen survivors, including two Yemeni smugglers, were taken to hospitals in Abyan.' He added: 'Because the hospital's morgues could not accommodate this large number of bodies, and to avoid an environmental crisis, the governor of Abyan ordered the immediate burial of the dead and formed an emergency committee to search for the missing.' Salah Balleel, a health official in Khanfar district in Abyan, said a hospital in the district had received one dead migrant and treated 11 survivors. 'The small boat was carrying far too many people,' Balleel said. 'We provided first aid and other medical assistance, and all the survivors have since left the hospital.' The migrants' journey, called the Eastern Route, is one of the 'busiest and riskiest migration routes in the world,' according to the IOM. Tens of thousands of people attempted the trip last year, fleeing conflict, poverty, drought or political repression in countries including Ethiopia, Eritrea and Somalia. To reach Saudi Arabia — where many hope to find work and disappear into a vast informal economy — they must first traverse Yemen, which shares a long, porous border with the kingdom. Yemen has been torn apart by its own war since 2014, when the Houthis ousted the internationally recognized government from the country's capital, Sanaa. A Saudi-led military coalition — backed by US military assistance and weaponry — embarked on a bombing campaign to rout the militia from power. Hundreds of thousands of people died from the violence, disease and starvation that resulted, in what became one of the world's worst humanitarian crises. This article originally appeared in The New York Times .
RTÉ News
18 hours ago
- RTÉ News
76 dead, dozens missing after migrant boat sinks off Yemen
At least 76 people have died and dozens are missing after a boat carrying mostly Ethiopian migrants sank off Yemen, officials said. Yemeni security officials said 76 bodies had been recovered and 32 people rescued from the shipwreck in the Gulf of Aden. The UN's migration agency said 157 people were on board. The incident occurred off Abyan governorate in southern Yemen, a frequent destination for boats smuggling African migrants hoping to reach the wealthy Gulf states. Some of those rescued have been transferred to Yemen's Aden, near Abyan, a security official said. UN agency the International Organization for Migration earlier gave a toll of at least 68 dead. The IOM's country chief of mission, Abdusattor Esoev, said that "the fate of the missing is still unknown." Despite the civil 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. Each year, thousands brave the so-called "Eastern Route" from Djibouti to Yemen across the Red Sea, in the hope of eventually reaching oil-rich Gulf countries such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. The IOM recorded at least 558 deaths on the Red Sea route last year, with 462 from boat accidents. Last month, at least eight people died after smugglers forced migrants to disembark from a boat in the Red Sea, according to the UN's migration agency. The vessel that sank off Abyan was carrying mostly Ethiopian migrants, according to the province's security directorate and an IOM source. Yemeni security forces were conducting operations to recover a "significant" number of bodies, the Abyan directorate said. On their way to the Gulf, migrants cross the Bab al-Mandab Strait, the narrow waterway at the mouth of the Red Sea that is a major route for international trade, as well as for migration and human trafficking. Once in war-torn Yemen, the Arabian Peninsula's poorest country, migrants often face other threats to their safety. The IOM says tens of thousands of migrants have become stranded in Yemen and suffer abuse and exploitation during their journeys. In April, more than 60 people were killed in a strike blamed on the United States that hit a migrant detention centre in Yemen, according to the Houthi rebels that control much of the country. The wealthy Gulf monarchies host significant populations of foreign workers from South Asia and Africa.
Extra.ie
28-07-2025
- Extra.ie
Fundraiser launched for bust of first Irish soldier to receive Military Medal for Gallantry
A fundraiser has been launched with the hopes of having a bust erected of the first Irish soldier to receive the Military Medal for Gallantry in the history of the state. The fundraiser has been created by the Irish United Nations Veterans Association with the aim of commemorating the brave actions of Anthony Browne, as well as other members of the ill-fated Congo Niemba Ambush patrol. The event saw nine Irish soldiers lose their lives, with Trooper Browne helping many of his squad escape before being killed himself, earning him the honour of the Military Medal for Gallantry (MMG) which is the equivalent of the British Victoria Cross — the first soldier of the Irish Defence Forces to receive such an honour. Anthony Browne. Pic: Supplied In 1960, Dubliner Browne was deployed to the Belgium Congo as a UN Peacekeeper aged just 19, and his heroic actions have led the UN vets to try and create a bust of Anthony in Dublin, using it as a place to visit, and talk about the brave Irish soldiers that have represented the country. Michael Buggy, who created the page, shared more of the Rialto native's story: 'On November 8, 1960 he was a member of an 11 strong reconnaissance patrol commanded by Lt Kevin Gleeson a Carlow man. During this patrol they were ambushed by Baluba Tribesmen over 100 strong. The 1962 funeral in Dublin of trooper Anthony Browne, one of the victims of the Niemba ambush. Pic: Supplied 'Nine members of the patrol lost their lives in the ambush, two members miraculously survived, eight bodies were recovered from the ambush scene and the two survivors were removed for medical care. 'Trooper Browne's body was not recovered until two years later from an unmarked grave in the bush, on information received from locals. The scene at the bridge shortly before the first bodies were recovered after the Battle of Niemba in The Congo in November 1960. Pic: Supplied 'One of the survivors in his subsequent report attributed his survival to the action taken by Anthony Browne, [and hence he] was awarded posthumously, the Military Medal of Honour (With, Distinction) in recognition of his exceptional bravery during the Niemba Ambush. All nine were also awarded the Military Star posthumously.' The group has set a target of €20,000, with Buggy adding: 'Your donation will help us fund a bust, not only to his memory, but also to all the other members of that ill-fated Congo Niemba Ambush patrol in 1960 which is still etched on the memory of all Military Personnel and the Thousands of mourners that lined O'Connell St, Dublin, on the return home of their bodies for Internment.'
