34 dead after migrant boat sinks off Senegal

A migrant boat has sunk off Senegal’s north-west coast, killing 34 people, according to Senegal’s state news agency APS. An unspecified number of people remain missing as the search continues, the agency reported.

The nationalities of those killed have not yet been established, said Saliou Diouf, founder of Boza Fii, a migrant-support organisation in Senegal.

The wreck is the latest tragedy on a route used by people attempting to travel from West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands. Thousands have died on the route in recent years, according to the report.

Spanish authorities declared an emergency on the island of El Hierro on Saturday after a sharp rise in arrivals by boat. More than 3,300 people had reportedly reached the island since the start of November, aboard about 30 boats.