Over 300 sub-Saharan migrants reach Spain in 24 hours
Despite the migration deal that Spain and the EU signed with Mauritania in early February 2024, aimed to reduce the flow of Sub-Saharan migrants from entering the European country, a large number of migrants have overwhelmed Spain’s Interior ministry in the last few months, reported Euronews on July 19th.
The route from Africa to the Canary Islands, located off Morocco’s southern coast, is the fastest-growing migration route to Europe, with the central Mediterranean route previously being the most popular.
READ: Mediterranean Tragedy: 1,000+ migrant deaths in 2023
Four boats carrying more than 300 migrants docked on the Spanish island of Gran Canaria in less than 24 hours.
Despite the danger of the journey, many migrants insist on taking their chances as there are few opportunities and sometimes political turmoil at home.
One of the wooden boats arrived at the island unassisted, with 11 out of the 64 people on board being rushed to hospital, some by helicopter as 4 were said to be in critical condition.
Another of the boats, carrying 145 people, all of sub-Saharan African origin, was escorted to port by the Maritime Safety and Rescue Society (Salvamento Marítimo) after being spotted around 15 kilometres southeast of Gran Canaria.
Spain’s Interior Ministry said that the number of migrants arriving by sea to the Canary Islands jumped by 160% between January and July 2024 compared to the same period during 2023.
READ: Spain: 1,000 migrants reach Canary Islands in 3 days
The ministry said around 25,300 people in total had made the perilous sea crossing to Spain, including to the mainland during that period, rising by 88%.
The European border control agency Frontex says irregular crossings are up 303% from January to May compared to a year ago.
In many cases, many of the arrivals to the Canary Islands are unaccompanied minors, putting a strain on relevant services across the archipelago where there are reportedly almost 6,000 immigrant children.
In the meantime, Spain is looking for other options on how to curb the flow of migrants coming from Africa entering the European country.
Euronews
