Some 21 people are reported to have been killed after a group of Somali migrants on board a boat in the Gulf of Aden rebelled against the people smugglers who were transporting them. According to the Qatari news agency around 50 immigrants were on board the craft, seeking to reach the Gulf countries. When the traffickers tried to force their 'human cargo' overboard, to avoid being intercepted by the Yemeni coast guard, the passengers refused, given the distance from the shore, and the smugglers opened fire. Despite being unarmed, the immigrants managed to gain possession of some of the smugglers' weapons and in the ensuing battle 21 people - six crew and 15 migrants - were killed. | Here's hoping the "smugglers" died slowly and painfully |
Every year, thousands of Somalis and Ethiopians fleeing poverty and, in Somalia's case, insecurity, including desperate refugees trying to escape persecution and violence, fall prey to unscrupulous traffickers in the hope of reaching Yemen, from where many seek to make their way into Europe.