Migrant boat capsizes off Yemeni coast, killing 41

A total of 41 bodies of African migrants were recovered after their overcrowded boat capsized in the Arabian Sea off the coast of eastern Yemen on Monday, a government official told Xinhua.

Ali Al-Dheeb, director general of the Yemeni Ministry of Health office in Shabwa province, revealed that a boat carrying more than 200 African migrants had met with catastrophe, overturning in the waters off the shores of Shabwa.

He confirmed that search and rescue teams from Shabwa's health office and the International Organization for Migration have been working tirelessly to recover the bodies from the shores of the Radhum district in southeastern Shabwa.

In addition to the 41 fatalities, Al-Dheeb said that more than 70 survivors managed to reach the district's coast and were promptly provided with primary medical care by the teams on site.

The official said that the death toll might increase further, given that some migrants were still unaccounted for following the tragic incident.

Despite the ongoing conflict that has ravaged Yemen for nearly a decade, migrants continue to undertake perilous sea journeys to the country, often falling victim to the dangers posed by rickety smuggling boats and extreme weather conditions.

Yemen serves as a transit point for thousands of African migrants seeking to reach Saudi Arabia and other Gulf states.