At least 10 African migrants die off Djibouti shore

ANKARA (AA) - At least 10 African migrants died off the coast of Djibouti, when they were returning from Yemen, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said on Thursday.

The victims’ bodies “washed up on shore,” the IOM said on Twitter.

“Dedicated Search and Rescue efforts are urgently needed,” it added.

In a previous statement released on Sept. 25, IOM had said the war-weary Yemen has seen more than 2,000 African migrants from Ethiopia and Somalia returning to Djibouti “after failing to reach the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia due to COVID-19 movement restrictions, border closures, and extreme danger along this migratory route.”

“They arrived hungry, tired and in need of medical assistance after making the treacherous boat journey back across the Gulf of Aden, and then walking to the town of Obock through the Djiboutian desert where temperatures reach 40C [104F],” it said.

The IOM also has voiced in the report that an additional 1,239 Ethiopian migrants “have been stranded for months across Djibouti, unable to reach Yemen or return home."

“A quarantine site established by the authorities with the support of IOM and other partners have been set up to help reduce the risk of COVID-19 spreading among themselves and their communities,” the statement added.