At least two people have died and 186 others are missing after four boats carrying migrants from Africa capsized overnight in waters off Yemen and Djibouti, the UN’s migration agency said on Friday.

Two vessels capsized off Yemen late on Thursday, said Tamim Eleian, a spokesperson for the International Organization for Migration or IOM. Two crewmembers were rescued, but 181 migrants and five Yemeni crewmembers remain missing, he said.

Two other boats capsized off the tiny African nation of Djibouti around the same time, he said. Two bodies of migrants were recovered, and all others on board were rescued.

Strong winds caused the two boats to capsize near the beach in Djibouti after they started sailing off, Abdusattor Esoev – head of the IOM mission in Yemen, said.

The third boat, which capsized off Dhubab district in Taiz governorate, southwestern Yemen, was carrying 31 Ethiopian migrants and three Yemeni crew. The fourth boat, which capsized near the same area, was heading to Ahwar district in Abyan governorate and carried 150 Ethiopian migrants and four Yemeni crew.

The IOM chief of mission in Yemen said the majority of those on-board were believed to be Ethiopian migrants and five were thought to be Yemeni crew members. At least 57, from both boats, were women.

“We are working with authorities to see if we can find any survivors, but I’m afraid we may not have any,” Abdusattor Esoev told the AFP news agency.

Two other boats capsized off the tiny African nation of Djibouti about the same time, Eleian  said. Two bodies of migrants were recovered, and all others on board were rescued.

Despite a nearly decadelong civil war, Yemen remains a major route for migrants and refugees from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach Gulf countries for work. Hundreds of thousands of people attempt the crossing each year.

To reach Yemen, people are taken by smugglers on often dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden.

The numbers of people making it to Yemen reached 97,200 in 2023 – triple the number in 2021. But last year, the number dropped to just under 61,000 amid increased patrols of the waters, according to an IOM report this month.

The IOM said 558 people died along the route in 2024. In January, 20 Ethiopians were killed when their boat capsized off Yemen.

Over the past decade, at least 2,082 people have disappeared along the route, including 693 known to have drowned, according to the IOM. About 380,000 migrants are currently in Yemen.

Yemen is a major route for migrants from East Africa and the Horn of Africa trying to reach Gulf countries for work, with hundreds of thousands attempting the route each year. To reach Yemen, migrants are taken by smugglers on often dangerous, overcrowded boats across the Red Sea or Gulf of Aden.

The numbers making it to Yemen reached 97,200 in 2023 – triple the number in 2021. Last year, the number dropped to just under 61,000, probably because of greater patrolling of the waters, according to an IOM report this month.

Over the past decade, at least 2,082 migrants have disappeared along the route, including 693 known to have drowned, according to the IOM. Some 380,000 migrants are currently in Yemen.

• An AP report