At least 75 Somalis have drowned off the coast of Yemen while trying to cross from Somalia to the Arab country, a Yemeni official said.

The official said the captain of the vessel carrying more than 250 migrants forced them to leave the ship and to try to swim ashore on Thursday. About 180 survived, the official from southern Abyan province told Reuters.

Many African migrants try to reach Yemen, which they see as a gateway to other parts of the Middle East, and the West. (Reporting by Mohamed Sudam; writing by Firouz Sedarat)