150 migrants thrown in shark-infested waters near Yemen

Somali refugees walk on their way to the southern Yemeni port city of Aden upon their arrival to the coast of Ahwar on a smuggling boat across the Gulf of Aden. Fighting in Somalia and new smuggling routes to Yemen lead hundreds of people to risk their lives by crossing the Gulf of Aden on small boats run by smugglers.

The latest migrant deaths raised calls for those ships to also act against human trafficking across the same waters, which is also fueled by the turmoil in Somalia, a country where there is no government control and armed groups are rampant.

"It's essentially the same problems that allow piracy and smuggling,' said Roger Middleton, an expert on East Africa at the Chatham House think tank in London.

Dire economic conditions and violence in Somalia drives the waves of migrants, while the general lawless that gives pirates a free hand also opens the door for smugglers. "People are very desperate,' Middleton said. He welcomed the NATO deployment of ships against piracy, calling it "excellent news' that could also help in stopping human trafficking. More.

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