Djibouti Boat Capsize: 109 Dead, Including 15 Children, Over 116 Missing in Red Sea Tragedy

Djibouti Boat Capsize: 109 Dead, Including 15 Children, Over 116 Missing in Red Sea Tragedy

At least 109 people, including 15 children, have died after crossing the Red Sea on a boat that capsized off the coast of Djibouti, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) says, calling it the largest maritime disaster to take place in the country.

More than 116 people are still missing after the tragedy, which, according to survivors, occurred near Guhere, to the north of the fishing port of Obock, on the night between October 8th and 9th. The boat had left Djibouti for Yemen.

The bodies of 52 men, 42 women and 15 children have so far been recovered, the UN agency noted. In addition, more than 80 migrants, all Ethiopian citizens, have survived the disaster, IOM added.

“We are deeply shocked by this humanitarian tragedy. Our deepest condolences go out to the families of the victims and those who have lost a loved one. We are also thinking of those who have survived the tragedy and those who still search for their relatives,” said Alexandre Coissac, IOM Chief of Mission in Djibouti.

IOM is providing medical care, psycho-social support, food and other assistance to 64 survivors of the shipwreck in the Obock migrant response center.

IOM is supporting the Djiboutian authorities in responding to the needs of the survivors. The Djiboutian authorities are conducting search and rescue operations. Local authorities are also providing medical care to the survivors and organizing the funeral of the deceased.

The maritime route from the Horn of Africa to the Arab Peninsula is one of the busiest migration routes in the world. Hundreds of thousands of people make this journey every year, with the majority of migrants and asylum seekers being from Ethiopia and Somalia. They are heading to Gulf States, primarily Saudi Arabia, in search of employment and economic opportunity, while many are displaced due to conflict and disasters in their home countries.

The eastern maritime route is one of the three main migration routes from the Horn of Africa, alongside the northern and southern routes. The eastern route is by far the busiest, but it is also the most dangerous, as many migrants die from the extreme heat when walking from Yemen to Saudi Arabia. Others drown when traveling across the water in boats provided by human traffickers after having been crammed into them.

According to the IOM’s Missing Migrants Project, more than 900 people died or went missing during migration along the eastern route in 2025. At the same time, the number of migrants attempting to cross the Red Sea has increased by 18% compared to the same period last year. On March 27, nine people died, and 45 were declared missing after a similar tragedy.

The current situation in the Red Sea region is complicated by the ongoing military confrontation between Iran and Saudi Arabia for dominance in the area. This has led to an influx of more than 3,800 people fleeing the fighting into Djibouti, according to Onars, the agency for assistance to refugees and disaster victims in Djibouti.