Twenty Ethiopian migrants lost their lives when the boat they were on sank off the coast of Yemen, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) announced.

The vessel, which had departed from Djibouti, was carrying 34 Ethiopian migrants, along with a Yemeni captain and his assistant. It sank on Saturday off the coast of Taiz, in southwestern Yemen, due to strong winds. According to the IOM, the victims were nine women and eleven men.

Each year, tens of thousands of migrants from the Horn of Africa cross the Red Sea, trying to reach the wealthy Gulf countries to escape wars, natural disasters, or poverty. The IOM recorded more than 60,000 migrant arrivals in Yemen in 2024 and at least 97,200 in 2023.

Those who manage to reach Yemen often face numerous safety threats in this, the poorest country on the Arabian Peninsula, which has been embroiled in a civil war for over a decade. Most aim to move on to Saudi Arabia or other Arab countries in the region, where they find work as laborers or domestic workers.

This latest tragedy “is a reminder of the dangerous conditions migrants face in their search for a bit of safety and a better life,” said Abdusattar Esoev, the IOM mission chief in Yemen.