50 Moroccans caught in Atlantic by Navy 

The Moroccan navy intercepted more than fifty migrants from sub-Saharan Africa off the southern coast of Morocco on August 8.  

A Moroccan military source said, this is one of a growing number of deadly crossing attempts to Spain  

One of the country’s Royal Navy unit on patrol off Tan-Tan on August 8, aided 56 would-be illegal migrants from the sub-Saharan African region aboard a makeshift boat, a military source noted, reports AFP, August 9. 

The migrants received first aid whilst on the boat, before being pulled to safety to the Moroccan port of Tan-Tan, then handed over to the gendarmerie for the usual administrative procedures”, the source added. 

On August 7, the Moroccan coastguard stated that it had recovered the bodies of five Senegalese migrants as well as rescuing 189 others whose boats had capsized last week off the small village of Guerguerat in Western Sahara, in the far south of the North African country. 

READ: Morocco navy recovers bodies of 5 Senegalese

At least 13 Senegalese migrants perished in mid-July when their boat sank off the Moroccan coast, the Senegalese authorities noted 

Moroccan authorities claim to have cracked down on 26,000 attempts at irregular migration during the first five months of this year. 

As Morocco is situated in the north-western region of Africa, it is a transit country for many migrants attempting to reach Europe via the Atlantic or the Mediterranean. 

AFP