Friday, 22 February, 2008
Some 37 Somali migrants drowned off the coast of Yemen when smugglers forced them to jump from boats to elude authorities, Yemen's official news agency has reported.
Seventy other migrants survived the ordeal, swimming through the Gulf of Aden's treacherous waters to reach the coastal town of Shabwa, the SABA' agency quoted an unidentified Yemeni security official as saying on Thursday.
The official said the bodies of the dead were buried in Shabwa, under United Nations supervision. UN officials in Yemen were not immediately available for comment.
Hundreds of Africans, mostly Somalis, die every year trying to reach Yemen. Many drown or are killed by pirates and smugglers in the dangerous waters separating Somalia and the Arabian peninsula.
Many of those who survive the journey register with the UN refugee agency, UNHCR, and stay in camps in Yemen, while others take jobs in the cities as labourers for less than a $US1 ($A1.09) a day.
In 2007, Yemeni authorities said about 5,000 illegal Ethiopian and Somali migrants arrived in Yemen. Nearly 400 died along the way.
The wave of refugees to the poorest country in the Arab world shows no sign of easing as violence continues to rock Somalia, despite Ethiopia's intervention in the country to support the internationally recognised government in December 2006.
Yemen estimates that some 750,000 Africans have sought refuge in Yemen, but the UNHCR says some 88,000 are registered there.
Source: AAP
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