As many as 150 Somalis may have died when two boats sank as they ferried people away from their war-torn country. Some bodies have been recovered from the waterway between Somalia and Yemen, but it is feared most will never be found. It is unclear whether the boats were fleeing the fighting or were part of the wider trend of people quitting the Horn of Africa, which is steeped in the blood of several wars. Thousands of people lose their lives each year in these seas, according to aid agencies. They either attempt escape from the region in rickety boats or are forced to jump from boats by crews who rob them of their meager possessions. The Gulf of Aden is also the hunting ground of pirates.