Banjul, Nov 8 — A total of 101 migrants were rescued off Sika and Albreda in The Gambia after their boat caught fire, the Gambia Immigration Department (GID) said in a statement.
The rescue operation involved GID's migration management and border patrol units in Barra, the Gambia Red Cross Society, the Gambia Fire and Rescue Services, and the Gambia Navy.
The rescued migrants comprised 72 Senegalese, 27 Gambians and two Guineans. All were male, including five minors, according to the statement, Xinhua News Agency reported.
14 of those rescued were receiving treatment at Essau Health Center at the time of the statement, while two others had been treated and discharged from Albreda Health Center and were assisting investigators, GID said.
On September 28, three migrants died after a taxi-boat sank off northern France, local media reported.
According to French broadcaster France Info, 105 people were aboard the taxi-boat off Wissant in the department of Pas-de-Calais when the incident occurred. A provisional toll showed that three people died and four others were slightly injured.
Boats used by migrant smugglers to cross the English Channel have become larger in recent years, with their average capacity increasing from 26 people in 2021 to 65 since the beginning of 2026, France Info reported, citing the maritime prefecture.
Small-boat crossings by illegal migrants across the channel have emerged as a major issue in relations between Britain and France.
A total of 781 migrants arrived in Britain after crossing the channel in small boats on September 23, marking the highest number of such arrivals in a single day so far this year, according to Sky News.
In August, 50 migrants were rescued and the bodies of seven others were discovered by a humanitarian vessel operated by Italian non-governmental organization Emergency in international waters off the Libyan coast, the organisation said.
The organisation said its vessel found the migrants aboard a two-deck wooden boat and carried out the rescue operation, transferring the survivors onto its vessel.
It did not provide the nationalities of the migrants or further details about the circumstances of the incident.
Libya is a major departure point for migrants seeking to cross the Mediterranean to Europe. Migrant boat accidents frequently occur off its coast, resulting in deaths and disappearances.