The IOM is assisting local authorities with search and rescue efforts. This is the latest in a series of deadly incidents involving migrant boats in the Red Sea off the coast of Djibouti.

Earlier this month, the Ethiopian Embassy in Djibouti reported that at least 38 Ethiopian migrants died in a similar shipwreck.

According to the embassy, over 200,000 Ethiopians undertake these perilous journeys by land and sea each year, hoping to reach the Middle East. Tragically, at least 189 Ethiopian nationals have lost their lives off the coast of Djibouti in the past five years.

These migrants, mainly from East Africa, are desperate to reach the Middle East, often via war-torn Yemen, with the ultimate goal of reaching Saudi Arabia. (ILKHA)