02 / 10
Boat capsize off Djibouti kills 139
A boat carrying migrants from Djibouti to Yemen capsized near Guhere, leaving 139 dead and 84 missing.
What happened
The boat capsized overnight near Guhere, north of Obock, while travelling from Djibouti to Yemen. The International Organization for Migration said 139 people, including 15 children, died. Eighty-four remained missing after the vessel, carrying 305 people, sank. Djiboutian authorities continued search and rescue operations.
Numbers
- 139 deadincluding 15 children — Toll revised after further recoveries
- 84 missingafter the capsize — Search operations continue
- 305 aboardon the Djibouti-Yemen crossing — Most were Ethiopian migrants
- 82 survivorsrescued from the boat — All were Ethiopian nationals
Questions
- Where did the boat sink?
- Survivors placed the capsize near Guhere, north of the Djiboutian fishing town of Obock, beside the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
- Why take this sea route?
- Migrants from the Horn of Africa use Yemen as a route toward Gulf states, seeking work, safety and economic opportunities.
- Who survived the crossing?
- Those rescued were Ethiopian nationals. Authorities arranged medical care for survivors and burials for recovered bodies, while relatives awaited news.
- What drives continued crossings?
- The migration agency links the journeys to poverty, insecurity and climate impacts, despite conflict in Yemen and wider regional instability.
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The catch
The death toll was revised upward as more bodies were recovered, and the number of missing may change.
Identification and searches are continuing.