Forty-five Somali migrants drowned when their boat capsized 95 km away from Mukalla Port on the coast of Yemen on 28 February, Yemeni authorities said.
The boat was carrying 45 migrants from Somalia, one from Ethiopia and three Somali smugglers, the ministry of interior said in a statement. The three smugglers and Ethiopian migrant somehow managed to reach the shore safely where the smugglers were arrested and questioned by local authorities.
This is the second smuggling boat to approach the Yemeni coast in a week. On 24 February, the UN Refugee Agency (UNHCR) said six Africans had drowned and another 11 went missing after smugglers pushed migrants overboard in deep waters off the Yemeni coast.
"We are concerned that this trend might continue through 2009. In 2008, more than 50,000 people crossed the Gulf of Aden to Yemen, straining UNHCR's capacity and resources," UNHCR said.
Source: IRIN
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