A tragic incident off the coast of Mauritania has claimed the lives of sixty-nine people this week, after a migrant boat carrying approximately 160 individuals capsized. The vessel, which had departed from The Gambia a week prior and included Senegalese and Gambian nationals, met its devastating end late on Tuesday.

The head of the coastguard, Mohamed Abdallah, revealed a heartbreaking detail that the accident occurred when passengers, catching sight of the lights of a coastal town, Mheijrat, about 50 miles (80km) north of Nouakchott, pressed to one side of the boat in anticipation, causing it to overturn. While the initial death toll was 49, it tragically rose to 69, with only seventeen survivors pulled from the treacherous waters.

This deeply saddening event underscores the immense peril faced by thousands of would-be migrants each year. Driven by the hope of reaching Europe, often from neighbouring countries like Senegal and Mali, many embark on dangerous maritime passages in fragile vessels, battling strong ocean currents. The International Organisation for Migration reports that at least 8,938 people died in 2024 attempting border crossings, a stark reminder of the human cost of these desperate journeys.