US EditionTragedy at Sea: Migrant Boat Disaster Near Comoros
Survivors said migrants faced severe shortages of food and water during the crossing; at least 18 drowned after smugglers abandoned the boat near Grande Comore, officials reported.
- On Thursday, Comoros Interior Minister Mohamed Ahamada reported that 17 bodies were recovered from a migrant boat discovered late Wednesday off the coast of Comoros near Mitsamiouli, with survivors attempting to reach the French territory of Mayotte.
- Around 50 people were aboard the smuggling vessel when residents in Mitsamiouli heard cries for help and alerted police. Migrants often attempt the perilous sea crossing to Mayotte, a French overseas territory that attracts people seeking access to French infrastructure and social services.
- Survivors reported traveling from the Democratic Republic of Congo, with a 25-year-old from North Kivu stating, "We had no bread and water." Officials confirmed that 30 people survived after being set adrift near the shore.
- Rescuers and authorities on Grande Comore continue pulling bodies from the water, according to Interior Minister Ahamada. The coastguard is searching for four missing people following the tragedy near the island's northern tip.
- The United Nation migration agency IOM reports that thousands have died along this route in recent years. In 2024, at least 25 people died near Mayotte when a smuggling boat capsized, illustrating the persistent dangers migrants face.
15 Articles
15 Articles
The Star Kuala Lumpur
Daily Finland18 illegal migrants die off Comoros coast
ANTANANARIVO, March 19 (Xinhua) -- Eighteen illegal migrants drowned in a maritime incident on Wednesday off the coast of the Mitsamiouli region in the northern part of Grande Comore island in the Comoros, the country's foreign ministry said Thursday. Read full story
Emirates24|7
ugandanews.net18 African migrants drown off Comoros coast
WAM - At least 18 African migrants who were trying to reach the French Indian Ocean island of Mayotte have drowned off the Comoros while trying to reach shore.Mohamed Ahmed Assoumani, Minister of Interior of the Comoros, said that 30 people were rescued after the group reached an area near the coastal town of Mitsamiouli, about 40 kilometres from the capital, Moroni.Survivors said they were from the Democratic Republic of the Congo and were head…
For more than five years, groups of migrants hoping to join the French department of Mayotte, located geographically in the Comoros archipelago, have landed near the Comorian coast.
Disposed in the dark and on a sandbank, migrants from continental Africa lost their lives trying to reach the shore, in Mitsamihuli, north of the Grande Comore, on the evening of Wednesday, March 18. According to the Comorian authorities, the death rate is 18 deaths, three missing and some 30 survivors.
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 50% of the sources lean Right
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
