MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) — A boat capsized in waters between Algeria and Spain, leaving at least 17 Somali migrants dead, Somalia's ambassador to Algeria said Thursday.

Ambassador Yusuf Ahmed Hassan told Somali state media that he was contacted by distressed parents searching for information about their missing relatives. The victims include 12 men and five women who drowned when their boat capsized while attempting the often-dangerous journey to Europe.

“I was reached by parents who were looking for their children and wanted to know their whereabouts,” he said.

Hassan said that he then contacted the Algerian Foreign Ministry, which informed him that a group of African migrants had died in a coastal province about 100 kilometers (60 miles) west of the capital, Algiers.

The ambassador said that he traveled to the Algerian city of Bou Ismail early Thursday, arriving at around 6 a.m.

“I visited two hospitals in the province and saw the bodies,” he said.

The route between North Africa and Spain is one of several commonly used by migrants seeking to reach Europe, often involving overcrowded and unseaworthy boats.

Shipwrecks are frequent along these routes, particularly in the western Mediterranean and Atlantic corridors, where thousands of migrants risk their lives each year fleeing conflict, poverty and climate-related hardships.

Somali migrants are among those increasingly undertaking such journeys, driven by insecurity, limited economic opportunities and prolonged drought conditions at home.

Algerian authorities haven't yet released full details about the latest tragedy, including the total number of passengers on board or how the boat capsized.