UN report: 123 migrants killed in shipwrecks off Yemen and Djibouti in second quarter of this year

A UN report said on Monday that at least 123 African migrants were killed in drowning incidents during their journey to and from Yemen during the second quarter of this year.

The International Organization for Migration said that it had monitored four drowning incidents of African migrants off the coast of Yemen and Djibouti on the eastern migration route, which claimed the lives of at least 123 migrants and left others missing during the period from April to July.

The organization explained that among the victims were at least 62 people who died off the coast of Djibouti while returning from Lahj in two incidents last April.

At least 61 others were killed and four others went missing while coming to Yemen in two incidents off the coasts of Shabwa and Taiz, in June and July respectively, according to the report.

The UN organization indicated that the recurrence of these incidents throughout the reporting period confirms the risks faced by migrants along the route between the Horn of Africa and Yemen.

Every year, tens of thousands of African migrants, mostly from Ethiopia and Somalia, enter Yemen by sea to reach Saudi Arabia, fleeing conflicts or natural disasters, or seeking better living opportunities.