11 Somali emigrants killed while sailing to Yemen
Somalia-Yemen, Local, 9/13/2005

Some 11 Somali emigrants were killed after smugglers left them helpless in an ailing boat for 20 days in the sea while they were in their way to Yemen.

One of the survivors said they were 100 persons when they left Somalia and they took the boat on their way to Yemen. He said that three days after sailing they food supply finished. He added "we have eaten what we could pick from the sea after our food expired and 61 of us died of hunger."

Another survivor said "we were obliged during our crisis to steal the food women had, but we shared what we had stolen with those women."

The crisis of what was left of the emigrants ended when a Danish ship was passing near the ailing ship and rescued the remaining 39 persons who were found alive. They included one woman who gave birth while she was at sea.

Worthy mentioning that 45 Africans, most of them are Ethiopians and Somalis, died last week after they were forced by armed smugglers to throw themselves in the sea as they were sailing to Yemen.

The UN international migration organization expected the increase in the number of African emigrants who gamble with their life to go to Yemen during the next coming months because of the calm conditions in the Gulf of Aden.

Worthy mentioning that the Somalis flee from their country because of violence, while the Ethiopians decide to migrate on the hope to improve their living conditions.

Previous Stories:
  Accord for releasing hijacked UN ship in Somalia   (8/8/2005)
  UN suspends food shipments to Somali tsunami victims after ship is hijacked   (7/5/2005)
  Yemen attempts to halt the escape of Somali people to it   (4/3/1998)
  Somalis drown off Yemeni coast   (4/1/1998)

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