African Migrant Boat Capsizes Near Yemen, 68 Dead

A boat carrying African migrants, mostly Ethiopians, has sank off the coast of Yemen, killing at least 68 people and leaving 74 missing, according to the UN’s International Organization for Migration (IOM). The vessel was carrying 154 people when it capsized near the southern governorate of Abyan, where bodies have since washed ashore. Only 12 people survived the incident.

Despite Yemen’s ongoing civil war, it remains a major transit route for migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in Gulf countries like Saudi Arabia. Many Ethiopian migrants face grave risks along the journey, including violence, human rights abuses, and extreme poverty and hunger exacerbated by conflict and climate shocks at home.

The IOM reported that 60,000 migrants entered Yemen in 2024 alone, calling the Horn of Africa-Yemen route one of the world’s most dangerous migration corridors.