A Yemeni Interior Ministry official has said smugglers threw about 70 Somali and Ethiopian migrants overboard in shark-infested waters and at least seven of their bodies have washed ashore in Yemen.The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not allowed to talk to the media, said the incident took place over the weekend.
The UN refugee agency said on Saturday that seven other migrants from the same group are presumed dead. It said some survivors reached Yemen and were given food and water before they were transferred to a reception centre.
Hundreds of Africans die every year trying to reach Yemen, with many drowning or being attacked by pirates and smugglers in the dangerous waters separating Somalia and the Arabian peninsula.