That horrific voyage is not unusual. Smugglers frequently beat their passengers or force them overboard while still well away from shore. UNHCR has in the past thanked the crews of passing ships who have saved people found drifting helplessly in the shark-infested waters.

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We have repeatedly warned that some of the world's oldest and smallest indigenous groups are at high risk not only of displacement, but even of extinction because of the Colombian conflict. All indigenous communities have close links to their ancestral land, on which their cultural survival depends.

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At the end of last week we learned that the government of Syria has agreed to receive the group of 181 Palestinian refugees stranded at the Iraq-Jordanian border. We have not been informed that other Palestinians will be allowed into Syria.

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The true numbers can only be guessed at. Thousands of Somalis arrive in Yemen every year, including an estimated average of 100 people per day during the annual September to March period of good sailing weather. Last September, UNHCR called for international action to stem the flow of desperate people across the Gulf of Aden after at least 150 people died in a three-week period.

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In many cases trafficking is the only option. These people can't afford commercial flights or boats.

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Once again, people are dying trying to reach Yemen aboard smuggler's boats crossing the Gulf of Aden from Somalia.

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