Archipelago is overwhelmed
Helpers save around 500 refugees from the Canary Islands
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Boats carrying refugees are becoming more and more stranded off the Canary Islands; since the beginning of the year, the authorities have counted around 21,000 people. The number of deaths is also increasing. During the night, emergency services rescued more than 500 migrants, including many women and small children.
Within a few hours, Spanish emergency services rescued hundreds of migrants who were in distress off the Canary Islands. The Spanish maritime rescue service said the total of 516 refugees were traveling on five boats. The relief teams worked throughout the night on Thursday to rescue everyone, it was said. The migrants, including many women, minors and babies, came primarily from sub-Saharan Africa. They were taken to the islands of Tenerife, Gran Canaria and El Hierro, among others. Many of them are in critical condition.
According to the occupants of one of the boats, at least ten to twelve people died during the Atlantic crossing. The bodies were thrown overboard. A woman gave birth to a child on the crossing, the regional newspaper “La Provincia” and other media reported, citing the rescue teams.
More refugee boats have been arriving on the Canary Islands archipelago around 100 kilometers off the northwest coast of Africa for a long time. Migration on the route has continued to increase since last fall. It is believed that this is, among other things, related to the political and social crisis in Senegal. According to the latest survey by the Interior Ministry in Madrid, almost 21,000 migrants arrived in Spain by sea in the first five months of the year. That is 136 percent more than in the same period last year.
“Canaries have to bear the pressure alone”
Regional Prime Minister Fernando Clavijo again called for urgent action from Spain and Europe. The situation was “not fair,” he complained. “Neither for the people who are fleeing hunger and death, nor for the Canary Islands,” which “have to bear all this pressure on Europe's southern border alone.”
According to the respected Spanish aid organization Caminando Fronteras, which is very well networked in Africa, at least 6,618 migrants died last year trying to reach Spain by sea. That was 177 percent more than in 2022, when at least 2,390 deaths were registered. The majority of deaths, 6,007, occurred last year on the route from West Africa to the Canary Islands. According to the organization, a total of 611 deaths were registered on the so-called Mediterranean route and on the Strait of Gibraltar.
