At least 30 decomposing bodies have been found on a boat off the coast of Senegal, military authorities say.
The navy was informed of a vessel that was adrift about 70km (45 miles) from the capital Dakar, according to a military statement on X. They brought the wooden canoe, or pirogue, into port on Monday morning.
“Recovery, identification and transfer operations are being made extremely delicate by the advanced state of decomposition of the bodies,” the statement said.
There has been a recent increase in migrants setting off from Senegal for Spain’s Canary Islands – a journey of more than 1,500km (950 miles) across the Atlantic Ocean.
Investigations are underway to determine when and where the boat departed, and the how many people were on board, the army said.
Senegal’s government announced a 10-year plan in August to tackle illegal migration amid a surge in migrant-related deaths.
The authorities have intercepted hundreds of migrants on boats off the country’s coast in recent weeks.
Many undocumented migrants fleeing poverty, conflict, or unemployment make perilous journeys by sea every year in the hope of reaching Europe using the Atlantic route. But the waters are treacherous because of the strong currents.