Eighty-six Somalis were feared drowned Sunday after the crew of a boat smuggling them into Yemen forced them into the water when the vessel developed engine trouble, reported the Telegraph newspaper.
A Somali official said that 70 people had been rescued by fishing boats when the ship was sighted off the coast on Thursday after more than a week at sea.
Five of the people saved had since died, said the paper.
Security forces are searching for the crew, who were said to have used guns to threaten their passengers.
The boat embarked nine days ago from the port of Madeda, 10 miles east of Bosaso on the northern coast of Somalia – Albawaba.com
