Overview

• On May 26, police in St. Vincent and the Grenadines discovered 11 bodies aboard a 45-foot vessel that washed ashore on Canouan Island.
• Authorities reported the remains were in an advanced state of decomposition and accompanied by several passports appearing to be from Mali.
• The bodies have been transported to the Kingstown mortuary for forensic analysis as investigators work with regional and international partners to verify identities and trace the boat’s origin.
• This case adds to a recent pattern of migrant deaths in the Caribbean that includes 19 bodies found in St. Kitts and Nevis in January.
• The UN refugee agency believes the migrants were likely seeking refuge in the Canary Islands to escape violence in Mali, with 2024 recording nearly 9,000 deaths on migration routes.