The military reported on Monday that at least 30 bodies in decomposition were discovered in a boat floating 70 km (38 miles) off Dakar's coast, the capital of Senegal.

In a military statement, it was revealed that the navy had been informed about the boat's location on Sunday night and a patrol vessel was deployed immediately to the area.

The report said that the number of bodies counted so far was thirty. It added that further investigations would reveal more information about the death toll, as well as the origin of the boat.

It said that the advanced state of decomposition makes identification difficult.

One of the deadliest migration routes in the world is the Atlantic route between West Africa and the Canary Islands. This is the route that African migrants use to try to reach Spain.

Walking Borders, a group that advocates for migrants' rights, reported in June that 5,000 migrants would die at sea trying to reach Spain in the first five month of 2024. (Reporting and writing by Ngouda Dian; Editing and editing by Bate Felix, Angus MacSwan).

(source: Reuters)