At least 53 people have drowned off the coast of Yemen while trying to cross from Somalia to the Arabian Peninsula country, a Yemeni official said today.
The captain of the vessel carrying about 145 Somali migrants forced them to jump into the sea off Yemen's southern province of Abyan to swim ashore, the official said. About 92 survived and were sent to refugee camps, he added.
Last week another 75 Somali migrants drowned in a similar incident.
Many African migrants try to reach Yemen, which they see as a gateway to wealthier parts of the Middle East, and the West.