At Least 109 Migrants Dead After Boat Capsizes Off Djibouti: UN

SANAA: A UN agency said on Sunday that at least 109 migrants, including 15 children, died when a boat capsized off Djibouti’s coast on the night of October 8-9, with about 116 others missing. The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said survivors reported the boat, carrying 350 people from Djibouti to Yemen, overturned north of the town of Obock.
The IOM said the 109 bodies recovered include 52 men, 42 women and 15 children (nine girls and six boys). More than 80 people survived, all Ethiopian nationals. The agency is assisting 64 survivors at a migrant center in Obock, while Djibouti authorities continue search and rescue operations amid growing fears for the missing.
IOM Djibouti Chief of Mission Alexander Kouissac called it a devastating loss of life and expressed sympathy for survivors and families who lost loved ones or are awaiting news of relatives. He said IOM teams are on the ground with Djiboutian authorities providing emergency assistance.
The tragedy is a stark reminder of the dangers migrants face on this route, crossing the Bab al-Mandeb Strait to Yemen and then on to Gulf states in search of economic opportunity. IOM said poverty, insecurity and the growing effects of climate change push many to make the journey despite rising instability in the Middle East.
Since September 10, IOM has tracked more than 20,000 crossings from Ethiopia to Djibouti. In 2025, more than 900 migrants died or went missing on the Yemen sea route, while the number attempting the journey rose 18 percent. In March 2026, a shipwreck left nine dead and 45 missing. IOM spokesman Kennedy Omondi Okoth told AFP this week that most of those attempting the crossing are from Ethiopia or Somalia, and many are stranded in Djibouti. IOM urged donors and partners to strengthen support for Djibouti, including search and rescue and life-saving assistance.