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At least seven people have died and numerous others remain unaccounted for after a craft ferrying around two hundred migrants seeking to enter European shores capsized near the shoreline of Gambia, reports confirm.

The vessel capsized in the early hours of Thursday close to Jinack in the North Bank Region and it was later found "grounded on a sandbank", the country's defence ministry stated in a release.

Ninety-six people have been rescued so far and a search is continuing for those still missing who were traveling on the shipwrecked vessel that was heading towards the Spanish Canary Islands.

The hazardous trip over the Atlantic Ocean has become an increasingly common route for migrants from Africa seeking entry into the EU.

Close to 47,000 individuals arrived at the Canary Islands in 2024 and estimates in excess of 9,000 migrants perished trying.

Ongoing Mission

After Wednesday's accident, the navy began a search-and-rescue operation, deploying a number of military boats and a commercial fishing craft that offered help, the military said.

Authorities say several of the victims are not from The Gambia and that their identities are still being verified.

The bodies of the seven individuals who drowned have been recovered, and a dozen of the saved are said to be in grave health and undergoing emergency treatment.

A Common Migration Route

This West African nation is one of the routes utilized by migrants attempting to enter European countries, frequently via hazardous voyages across ocean and terrain.

Over the past few years, the European Union has forged deals with multiple North African nations with the goal of reducing undocumented migration.