UN: More than 40 African migrants missing after accident off coast of Taiz

The United Nations (UN) announced on Thursday that 41 African migrants and refugees are missing after their boat sank in the Red Sea off the coast of Taiz Governorate.

In a statement issued on the X platform, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said that “a boat carrying 45 refugees and migrants capsized off the coast of Taiz last night, as a result of strong winds and overloading.”

A boat w/ 45 refugees & migrants capsized off Ta'iz, #Yemen last night due to strong winds and overloading. Only 4 survivors found. This highlights the perilous journeys between Yemen & Africa.

UNHCR & IOM are working w/ partners to assist survivors & address protection needs

— UNHCR Yemen (@UNHCRYemen) July 25, 2024

Rescue teams were able to recover only four survivors, with 41 people still missing. UNHCR added that its efforts, in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM) and other partners, continue to provide assistance to and meet the humanitarian needs of the survivors.

In a similar incident in June, 49 migrants died, including 31 women and six children, in the Arabian Sea off the coast of the city of Shabwa. Additionally, 140 others went missing after a boat carrying 260 migrants, including 115 Somalis and 145 Ethiopians, capsized, according to an IOM report.

Each year, tens of thousands of migrants from countries in the Horn of Africa, particularly Somalia and Ethiopia, flow into Yemen, using it as a transit point for crossing into Saudi Arabia and the Gulf states.

Many migrants fail to cross Yemen's borders with Saudi Arabia or Oman and end up stranded in war-torn Yemen under poor humanitarian conditions.