45 dead and 134 missing in tragic incident off the coast of Djibouti

Obock, October 2nd –– At least 45 people have tragically died and 134 are still missing after they were forced from their ship by smugglers on the open sea. The incident occurred off the coast of Obock, near Godoria, involving two boats carrying migrants returning from Yemen.

According to survivors, the first boat carried 100 migrants while the second carried 210, all returning to Djobouti from Yemen. The Yemeni boat operators forced the migrants to disembark in the open sea and swim. One woman drowned, but her four-month-old child survived along with 98 others from the first boat.

The International Organization for Migration in Djibouti is supporting government emergency services in search and rescue operations for missing people. So far, 32 people have been rescued and are receiving medical and psychosocial support. The Djiboutian Coast Guard is currently conducting search and rescue operations to locate the missing migrants.

This incident marks 2024 as the deadliest year for migrant sea crossings between the East and the Horn of Africa and Yemen and the incident. This incident is also the second most common on the eastern route after the deaths of 196 people in June 2024, marking a worrying trend this year.

IOM, in coordination with the Government of Djibouti, is providing humanitarian assistance and protection measures, including medical assistance, mental health and psychosocial support, as well as safe housing for survivors.

Prior to this incident, IOM recorded 124 deaths off the coast of Djibouti in 2024. Many migrants use this route to leave and return to their countries of origin, particularly Ethiopia and Somalia, in the hope of having better life chances in the Gulf States. Thousands remain stranded on the route in extremely difficult conditions and are subject to various forms of violence, exploitation and abuse. This highlights the urgent need for effective measures to protect migrants and prevent future deaths on this route.

IOM since 2014 Missing Migrants Project. has recorded more than 1,300 migrant deaths from drowning on the eastern route, including 337 from January to August 2024.

Note to editors:

The IOM's Missing Migrants Project is the only freely accessible database on migrant deaths and disappearances worldwide and the only indicator (10.7.3) to measure safe migration under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

To support the Djibouti Coast Guard in its search and rescue operations, IOM Djibouti, with funding from the Government of Japan, is implementing a project aimed at optimizing the Djibouti Coast Guard's search and rescue operations in line with migrants in distress Laws and standards to help international rescue.

Together with 48 other humanitarian and development organizations and governments, IOM coordinates the Regional Migrant Response Plan for the Horn of Africa, Yemen and Southern Africa (MRP) to respond to the urgent humanitarian needs of migrants along the eastern route. Although MRP partners asked for $112 millionThe appeal remains severely underfunded.

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For further information please contact:

In Djibouti: Eva Sibanda, [email protected] and Kaousar Saad [email protected]

In Nairobi: Yvonne Ndege, [email protected]

In Geneva: Kennedy Okoth, [email protected]