8 deaths and 22 missing: calls to enhance the protection of migrants on the Horn of Africa-Yemen road

According to the testimonies of survivors, smugglers arrested a boat on board about 150 people at sea on June 5, and forced passengers to get off the coast and swimming in the open waters to survive their lives.

In a statement issued today, Wednesday, Celsin Franz, the regional director of the International Organization for Migration in East and South Africa and the African century, said that the organization is doing everything in its power to support survivors and prevent more loss of life along this deadly road. She added: “Every life is lost in the sea a tragedy that should never happen. These young people have been forced into impossible options by smugglers who do not care about human life.”

The International Organization for Migration confirmed that its teams are on the ground to help in search and rescue operations and provide life -saving assistance to the survivors, in coordination with the national authorities. She said that many survivors in the desert were found in the days after the incident and were rescued by the patrols of the mobile organization, and they are currently receiving urgent medical care in a local hospital and psychological and social support at the response center of its migrants in Oppok.

So far, the search and rescue operations supported by the International Organization for Migration and Djibouti have recovered five bodies of the sea near Malhouli. While the death toll has reached eight, this is afraid of this number with the continued research efforts.

Every year, thousands of migrants risk their lives from the Horn of Africa along this risk -packed road in the hope of reaching the Gulf states. The International Organization for Migration said that this recent tragedy is part of a series of deadly marine incidents off the coast of Djibouti, which confirms the urgent need for stronger protection mechanisms for migrants along the way of immigration between the Horn of Africa and Yemen.

The International Organization for Migration called for increasing international support in response to this growing crisis to enhance searches and rescue operations and expand the scope of access to safe immigration paths.