The variety of migrants reaching Spain’s Canary Islands on precarious vessels from West Africa has hit an all-time annual file with 41,425 arrivals between Jan. 1 and Nov. 30 of this yr, Inside Ministry knowledge confirmed on Monday.
The seven islands off northwestern Africa’s Atlantic coast are struggling to soak up the surge in irregular migrants arriving on crammed, open-topped boats looking for higher alternatives in Europe.
With one month of 2024 nonetheless pending, that is the second yr in a row that the archipelago, a entrance line in Europe’s battle to curb migration, has seen a file quantity.
Mali, Senegal and Morocco had been the highest three nationalities of migrants reaching the Canaries, based on newest knowledge till October from the European Union’s border company Frontex.
Searching for to revert the development, Spain has requested Frontex to renew an air and maritime surveillance operation that had led to 2018 in Mauritania, Senegal and Gambia.
Final yr, 39,910 migrants arrived, surpassing the earlier file in 2006.
The Atlantic route is very harmful because the ocean’s tough climate can simply capsize the delicate rafts, pirogues and dinghies utilized by most migrants.
Between January and October, the Canaries registered the quickest improve in arrivals by sea within the EU, whilst unlawful migrant arrivals within the bloc slumped general, Frontex knowledge confirmed.
This text was produced by Reuters information company. It has not been edited by World South World.
