At least 140 migrants drown off Senegal coast, UN says

Published : 30 Oct 2020, 12:56

Sahos Desk

The UN has reported that at least 140 migrants bound for Europe have drowned after a boat carrying around 200 people sunk off the coast of Senegal.

The boat caught fire and capsized on Saturday, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said, shortly after leaving the town of Mbour, the BBC said.

According to BBC news, about 60 people were rescued.

The migrants are thought to have been trying to enter mainland Europe via the Canary Islands of Spain.

Since 2018, this route from West Africa has risen in popularity.

The incident on Saturday was the most deadly of its kind anywhere in the world this year, the UN said.

So far this year, according to the IOM, at least 414 people are known to have died along this path. In all of 2019, a total of 210 fatalities were reported in the same stretch.

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