Home News Morocco Spanish Authorities Intercept Three Moroccans Crossing to Spain on a Kayak

Spanish Authorities Intercept Three Moroccans Crossing to Spain on a Kayak

Border security forces arrested three Moroccans, and one from Komodo Island, crossing the Mediterranean Sea to Spain.

Spanish Navy Rescues 9 Moroccan Irregular Migrants off the Mediterranean — Would-be migrants on inflatable boat off the Spanish coast. Photo by AFP

Mohammed Amine Benabou is a BA holder in English Studies and an MA student majoring in Cultural Studies and Linguistics at the English Department, Ibn-Tofail University.

Jun 6, 2019

Rabat – Three Moroccan immigrants on board a Kayak attempted to cross the Mediterranean Sea to reach Europe on Tuesday, June 3.

According to the press agency El Faro de Ceuta, the maritime rescue unit, the “Salvamar Atria” arrested the three Moroccans following a tip-off. The rescue unit then handed them over to the Red Cross and the three are now awaiting their deportation back to Morocco through the border crossing point, Tarajal.

Despite the drop in the number of immigrants coming by sea, the Spanish enclaves on the northern tip of Morocco still face huge land crossings.

Most immigrants crossing by land run the risk of death from suffocation as they are most often stowed away in cars, the El Faro added.

Read also: Moroccans 4th Most Deported Immigrants From France

Morocco, which is considered the stepping-stone for immigrants crossing to Europe, has stepped up efforts in recent years to boost its’ border and maritime security. It has successfully scaled down the rate of immigrants crossing to Europe.

According to the Moroccan border security chief, Khali Zerouali, the number of immigrants, most of whom hail from sub-Saharan countries, dropped by 30 percent between 2018 and 2019.

Spain, however, has invested a $36,8 million budget into a project it called “smart borders” and has deployed a number of high-tech security equipment to help monitor the influx of migrants coming to Spain.