Madrid, Spain
Friday December 27, 2024
More than 10,400 migrants died or disappeared at sea trying to reach Spain in 2024, a year marked by a record migratory influx to the Canary archipelago, according to a report published Thursday by the Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras.
This figure is equivalent to an average of 30 deaths per day between January and December 15 of this year, says the NGO in a press release, which alerts maritime authorities to the presence of boats in distress.
The number of deaths is 58% higher than that recorded by the NGO last year, which counted 6,618 migrants dead or missing on the migration routes to Spain.
According to the report, 421 women and 1,538 children and adolescents died.
“These figures highlight a profound failure of rescue and protection systems”, said Helena Maleno, coordinator of the report, denouncing ‘an unacceptable tragedy’.
She called for “priority to be given to protecting the right to life, for search and rescue operations to be stepped up, and for justice to be guaranteed for the victims and their families”.
The dead and missing migrants came from at least 28 countries, mostly African, but also from Iraq and Pakistan.
The vast majority of victims (9,757) were recorded crossing the Atlantic Ocean between the northwest coast of Africa and the Canary Islands, according to the NGO’s data.
It was precisely on this route on Wednesday, Christmas Day, that seven boats were rescued, Spanish sea rescuers announced on X.
The number of migrants entering Spain irregularly via the Canary Islands has risen sharply in recent months, until at the end of November it exceeded the annual record set in 2023, according to the Ministry of the Interior.
According to the Ministry’s data, 60,216 migrants entered Spain illegally by land or sea between January and mid-December, compared with 52,591 for the whole of last year, an increase of 14.5%.
These massive arrivals have prompted the Canary Islands authorities to sound the alarm, claiming in particular that they are unable to cope with the influx of unaccompanied minors whom they have to care for in reception centers.
According to the authorities, thousands of people have died in recent years trying to reach Europe by the Atlantic route from Africa, mainly via the Canary Islands.
Despite frequent shipwrecks, this route is becoming increasingly attractive, as it is less closely monitored than the Mediterranean route.
Humaniterre with AFP
