Senegal migrant boat sinking, Digi Mart USA News (off the coast of Senegal): At least 34 people have died after a boat carrying migrants sank off the coast of Senegal, the Senegalese Press Agency (APS) reported, citing an official source. The interior ministry said one person had been rescued, but the number of people still missing had yet to be established.
The small wooden boat capsized between the capital, Dakar, and the northern city of Saint-Louis as it headed toward Spain’s Canary Islands. Saliou Diouf, founder of Senegalese migrant aid group Boza Fii, told AFP that all the bodies recovered so far were Senegalese.
The nationalities of other people on board had yet to be established as search operations continued.
Spanish migrant rights group Walking Borders recorded 635 deaths on the Atlantic route to the Canary Islands between January and May 2026, the highest toll among the routes it monitors. The group estimates that about 21 people died for every 100 who reached the Canary Islands during the period it monitored.
President Bassirou Diomaye Faye expressed his condolences to the victims’ families and urged Senegalese nationals not to risk their lives on dangerous sea crossings. In a statement posted on X, he pledged to intensify efforts to dismantle the networks organizing the journeys.
“We will relentlessly continue the fight against those who organize these crossings and the work that gives our young people reasons to hope here,” he said.
Senegalese authorities said they had intercepted another boat on Friday carrying 142 migrants attempting to reach Spain. Those on board included 23 women, two babies and two other children.
Police said the group comprised nationals of Senegal, Gambia, Guinea-Bissau, Guinea and Nigeria.
Meanwhile, a state of emergency was declared on the Spanish island of El Hierro on Saturday following a surge in migrant arrivals. More than 3,300 people have reached the island in about 30 boats since the beginning of November, according to local authorities, equal to almost a third of the island’s population.
Fernando Clavijo, president of the Canary Islands regional government, described the situation as “absolutely unsustainable,” according to Reuters.
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) cites limited employment opportunities, family pressures and established migration networks among the factors driving people to leave Senegal. Nearly one in four young people in Senegal was unemployed in the second quarter of 2026, according to the country’s statistics agency, a challenge for the government as it seeks to create jobs for a predominantly young population.
In a statement on Sunday, Senegal’s interior ministry said it would continue efforts to combat people-smuggling networks, including by strengthening cooperation with neighboring countries.
