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Somerset – Another irregular migration attempt was stopped on Wednesday off the Canary Islands in Lanzarote’s port. In a joint effort, Moroccan and Spanish authorities seized multiple boats commonly used on the migratory route.
The irregular migration route that stems from Morocco has seen a reduction this year by 5,137 compared to 2021, reflecting the increased security presence on borders. The route is known as one of the most dangerous paths into Europe.
Despite the reduction, earlier this month between 53 – 56 people were traveling by boat from Tan-Tan (850 Kilometers South East of Rabat) in Morocco, most of whom were lost at sea or died, reports from Moroccan and Spanish ONGs have confirmed.
So far there have been 11 bodies found that are now in the Tan Tan morgue after being allegedly involved in this particular migration attempt, the association Alarm Phone Collective detailed.
The same migrant aid association explained that they are not ruling out that a third migrant boat crossing has contributed to the bodies they have found this month. However, they are awaiting Moroccan authority’s confirmation on the matter.
A member of the association Maruki Garcia informed the media that there are another 14 bodies in the morgue near Guelmin.
Garcia shared his fears that the other 14 bodies came from yet another shipwreck that left Morocco around the same date.
In the early hours of Wednesday morning, rescue teams managed to save 77 Moroccans who were heading toward the Canary Islands, Spanish outlet EFE reported.
Out of the rescued would-be irregular migrants, there were 71 men, four women, and two children. They were all transported to Arrecife, a port in Lanzarote.
Alarm Phone Collective claims they made authorities aware of the exact GPS location of the boats on December 7 at 9:00 pm, but no rescue mission was immediately dispatched.
Although the total of migrants has decreased in 2022, Spain’s Ministry of the Interior disclosed that the figure still remains high, 15,466 irregular migrants have crossed into the Canary Islands since the start of the year.
Many of the migrants have traveled from other regions of Africa before crossing through Morocco, such as Senegal, Mali, and Guinea.
