Migrant boat capsizes off Djibouti, 109 dead and 116 missing

At least 109 people, including 15 children, died and 116 more were missing after an overcrowded migrant boat carrying 350 people capsized off Obock, Djibouti, while heading toward Yemen, according to the International Organization for Migration.

Why it matters: One of the deadliest recent wrecks on the Horn of Africa-to-Yemen route shows the smuggling trade's toll is still rising as migrants keep risking the crossing despite repeated disasters.

Data as of Sunday morning, October 11, 2026: the Sweden Herald article (TT News Agency reporting, citing an IOM statement) opened and read in full; the France24 item cited from feed metadata, page not renderable. Single-sourced on the casualty figures: the death toll and passenger count are the IOM's account, pending direct confirmation.

At least 109 migrants died, among them 15 children, and another 116 were missing after a boat carrying 350 people capsized in the sea north of Obock in Djibouti, according to a statement from the International Organization for Migration. Survivors described the vessel overturning en route to Yemen, a major destination for migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach Gulf countries for work. The wreck is one of the deadliest on the Djibouti crossing in years, following a series of recent shipwrecks off the same coast.

Migrant boat capsizes off Djibouti, 109 dead and 116 missing

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