According to survivors rescued by the International Organization for Migration (IOM), smugglers “violently pushed young men and women out of the boat.” There are eight dead and 12 missing among these migrants trying to return to the Horn of Africa.
It is a horror scene that on Sunday, October 4, described the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The drama unfolded off the coast of Djibouti aboard a boat transporting migrants to Obock, an important transit city for Africans trying to reach the Gulf.
“According to surviving witnesses rescued by the IOM, three smugglers violently pushed young men and women out of the boat, which was then in the open sea,” said Yvonne Ndege, a spokeswoman for the UN agency.
Recrudescence of migrants in Yemen for three weeks
The first toll is heavy: of the 34 migrants on board, eight died and 12 others are missing. The victims were Ethiopians seeking to return to the Horn of Africa after failing in their attempt to reach Saudi Arabia via Yemen. A wish impossible due to the many border closures associated with the Covid-19 pandemic.
The situation is getting worse lately. According to the IOM, at least 2,000 migrants have arrived from Yemen to Djibouti in the last three weeks. Most want to enter Ethiopia, Somalia or other countries in the Horn of Africa. And in the absence of a safe route possible, “they risk their lives, risk being exploited by smugglers and in this specific case die of it,” laments Yvonne Ndgege.
The Bab el-Mandeb Strait, which separates Djibouti from Yemen, is an important site for smuggling migrants and refugees in both directions. On the one hand, there are Yemenis fleeing the war, and on the other, Africans who want to try their luck on the Arabian Peninsula.
► See also: Migration: The UN extends the permit to inspect suspicious ships in Libya
(With AFP)
.
