Dubai: At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors -- all Ethiopian and Somali migrants -- managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen's Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned today after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

Yesterday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM's Yemen mission head, said the boat's crew immediately returned to Somalia yesterday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane".

"The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world's most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world".

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers -- who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden -- have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's UN-recognised government. </s> Dubai (AFP) - At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors -- all Ethiopian and Somali migrants -- managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen's Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

- 'Shocking and inhumane' -

Laurent de Boeck, IOM's Yemen mission head, said the boat's crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane".

"The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world's most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world".

Story continues

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers -- who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden -- have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> DUBAI: At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors - all Ethiopian and Somali migrants - managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen's Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organisation for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday (Aug 10) after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM's Yemen mission head, said the boat's crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane". "The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world's most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world".

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers - who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden - have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors -- all Ethiopian and Somali migrants -- managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen's Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM's Yemen mission head, said the boat's crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane".

"The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world's most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world".

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers -- who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden -- have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AFP) — At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors — all Ethiopian and Somali migrants — managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen’s Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

“The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore,” an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM’s Yemen mission head, said the boat’s crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as “shocking and inhumane.”

“The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future,” he said.

Long the Arab world’s most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the “largest humanitarian crisis in the world.”

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Houthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers — who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden — have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> DUBAI: At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors -- all Ethiopian and Somali migrants -- managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen’s Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organisation for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP. Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States. They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM’s Yemen mission head, said the boat’s crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route. He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane".

"The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world’s most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world". Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18. The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers -- who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden -- have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s UN-recognised government. The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> DUBAI - At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors - all Ethiopian and Somali migrants - managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen’s Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors. “The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore”, an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM’s Yemen mission head, said the boat’s crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as “shocking and inhumane”.

“The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future,” he said.

Long the Arab world’s most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the “largest humanitarian crisis in the world”.

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine. The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers - who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden - have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen’s UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> Dubai: At least five migrants drowned and 50 went missing Thursday when smugglers forced 180 Africans off a boat bound for Yemen, a day after a similar incident left 50 dead, the International Organization for Migration said.

Twenty-five people were being treated for injuries on a Yemeni beach on the Red Sea, said the UN migration agency, which could not immediately confirm the nationalities of the casualties.

On Wednesday, people traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, the IOM said.

IOM teams, working with International Committee of the Red Cross representation, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa province in southern Yemen. They had been buried by survivors.

The average age of the migrants was 16.

Long the poorest country in the Arab world, Yemen has been called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world" by the United Nations.

A brutal war since March 2015 between its Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran, a cholera outbreak and the looming threat of famine have left nearly 10,300 people dead and displaced millions.

Yet Yemen continues to draw migrants desperate for work in the stable and prosperous Gulf, accessible by land through its border with Saudi Arabia.

IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have left the Horn of Africa headed for Yemen since the start of 2017.

"This journey is especially hazardous during the current windy season in the Indian Ocean. Smugglers are active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, offering fake promises to vulnerable migrants," IOM said. </s> Dubai (AFP) - At least 56 people have drowned over the past 24 hours, and dozens remain missing, after human traffickers forced 300 African migrants off two Yemen-bound boats and into the sea.

Survivors -- all Ethiopian and Somali migrants -- managed to make their way to Shabwa, a southern province along Yemen's Arabian Sea coastline, the International Organization for Migration said.

The war in Yemen has left over 8,300 people dead and displaced millions since 2015, but the impoverished country continues to draw migrants from the Horn of Africa seeking work in prosperous Gulf countries further north.

At least six people drowned on Thursday after human smugglers forced 180 Ethiopians off their boat and into the choppy waters of the Arabian Sea, an IOM spokesperson told AFP.

Thirteen people remained unaccounted for, the spokesperson said. The majority of the migrants appeared to be teenagers and young adults.

On Wednesday, traffickers also forced more than 120 Somali and Ethiopian migrants into the rough seas off Yemen to avoid arrest by local authorities, leaving at least 50 dead and 22 missing, IOM reported.

IOM teams, working with the International Committee of the Red Cross, found the bodies of 29 migrants in shallow graves along the coast of Shabwa, currently under the control of Yemeni troops backed by the United States.

They had been buried by survivors.

"The smugglers deliberately pushed the migrants into the waters since they feared that they would be arrested by the authorities once they reach the shore", an IOM emergency officer in Aden, where the Yemeni government is based, told AFP.

Laurent de Boeck, IOM's Yemen mission head, said the boat's crew immediately returned to Somalia on Wednesday to pick up more migrants headed to Yemen on the same route.

He described the forced drownings as "shocking and inhumane".

"The suffering of migrants on this migration route is enormous. Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

Long the Arab world's most impoverished country, Yemen has all but collapsed in what the United Nations has called the "largest humanitarian crisis in the world".

Years of fighting between the Saudi-backed government and Shiite Huthi rebels allied with Iran have been compounded by a cholera outbreak that has killed almost 2,000 people and the looming threat of famine.

The IOM estimates some 55,000 migrants have however left the Horn of Africa for Yemen since the start of 2017, more than half of them under the age of 18.

The journey is particularly dangerous at this time of year due to high winds in the Indian Ocean.

Despite the war, smugglers -- who are highly active in the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden -- have continued to offer passage through Yemen, which shares a land border with Saudi Arabia.

In March, a helicopter opened fire on the vessel carrying over 140 Somali passengers in the Red Sea off the Yemen coast, killing 42 civilians and wounding another 34.

A confidential UN report, seen by AFP in June, said the attack constituted a violation of international humanitarian law and was most likely carried out by a Saudi-led military coalition backing Yemen's UN-recognised government.

The coalition has denied that its forces were operating in the area when the vessel carrying Somali refugees came under attack. </s> Five migrants are dead and another 50 are reported missing after smugglers forced them from a boat off the coast of Yemen in the second such drowning in two days, the U.N. migration agency said Thursday.

The International Organization for Migration statement came less than a day after it said up to 50 migrants from Ethiopia and Somalia were "deliberately drowned" by a smuggler in a separate boat off Yemen.

Up to 180 migrants were forced from the boat in the latest incident Thursday morning, the IOM said.

"This is shocking and alarming," said Laurent de Boeck, the IOM's chief of mission in Yemen. "They were dropped at sea but closer to the beach this time." He said staffers at the scene had found five bodies.

The narrow waters between the Horn of Africa and Yemen have been a popular migration route despite Yemen's ongoing conflict. Migrants try to make their way to the oil-rich Gulf countries.

On Wednesday, a smuggler forced more than 120 migrants into the sea as they approached Yemen's coast, the IOM said. Its staffers found the shallow graves of 29 of the migrants on a beach in Shabwa during a routine patrol. The dead were buried by those who survived. At least 22 migrants remained missing.

The passengers' average age was around 16, the IOM said.

"The survivors told our colleagues on the beach that the smuggler pushed them to the sea when he saw some 'authority types' near the coast," de Boeck said. "They also told us that the smuggler has already returned to Somalia to continue his business and pick up more migrants to bring to Yemen on the same route."

De Boeck called the suffering of migrants on the route enormous, especially during the current windy season on the Indian Ocean. "Too many young people pay smugglers with the false hope of a better future," he said.

The IOM says about 55,000 migrants have left Horn of Africa nations for Yemen since January, with most from Somalia and Ethiopia. A third of them are estimated to be women.

Despite the fighting in Yemen, African migrants continue to arrive in the war-torn country where there is no central authority to prevent them from traveling onward. The migrants are vulnerable to abuse by armed trafficking rings, many of them believed to be connected to the armed groups involved in the war.

The conflict itself is a deadly risk. In March, Somalia's government blamed the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen for an attack on a boat that killed at least 42 Somali refugees off Yemen's coast.

Some Somalis are desperate to avoid years of chaos at home with attacks by homegrown extremist group al-Shabab and deadly drought. Some Ethiopians have left home after months of deadly anti-government protests and a 10-month state of emergency.

More than 111,500 migrants landed on Yemen's shores last year, up from around 100,000 the year before, according to the Regional Mixed Migration Secretariat, a grouping of international agencies that monitors migration in the area.
The United Nations International Organization for Migration reports, over the last two days in two incidents, smugglers have thrown 280 migrants from Ethiopia and other Horn of Africa countries into the sea off the coast of Yemen. More than 50 refugees have drowned with over 30 people still missing.