Extremely tragic scenes take place after a failed crossing of an African boat with more than 58 refugees on board to the Spanish Canary Islands. The rescue operation is still ongoing and at least fourteen people have already been killed.
Spanish aid agency Caminando Fronteras (Border Workers) said the rubber boat went into distress off the coast of Morocco on Thursday and barely stayed on the surface. The survivors would cling to the boat.
According to the Spanish sea rescue service, a rescue operation is now underway from Morocco, Spanish state television RTVE reported on Friday. Caminando Fronteras criticized that the rescue operation was launched too late and that Morocco and Spain often remained inactive because they blamed each other, she told Spanish state radio station RNE.
The number of refugees in the Canary Islands is increasing
The Canary Islands have experienced a sharp increase in refugee boat arrivals since early October. According to the Spanish Ministry of the Interior, an increase of around 80 percent was registered in 2023 compared to the same period last year. According to the UN refugee agency UNHCR, more than 38,000 refugees from Africa had been counted this year as of December 24.
According to information from Caminando Fronteras, at least 778 people died trying to reach the Canary Islands via the dangerous route from West Africa across the Atlantic Ocean in the first six months of the year.
Source: Krone
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