Sanaa, Dec 8 (IANS): At least 70 Ethiopian migrants drowned when their boat sank off the coast of Yemen, the interior ministry said Monday.
The accident was caused Sunday by high winds and rough waters off the port city of Al-Makha, near the Strait of Bab el-Mandeb, Press TV quoted the interior ministry as saying in a statement.
All those who were on board drowned, it added.
In a similar accident in May, about 60 migrants from Ethiopia and Somalia drowned off the coast of Yemen.
Such incidents are common as smugglers usually use unsafe and overcrowded boats to carry migrants fleeing troubled countries in the Horn of Africa.
Yemen is seen as a gateway to wealthier countries such as Saudi Arabia and Oman, as well as European nations.