More and more are aiming for EU territory across the Atlantic. Last year, more than 10,000 people died or went missing trying to reach Spain by sea.
A record 46,843 migrants arrived illegally in the Spanish Canary Islands last year via the Atlantic, the Spanish Ministry of the Interior says. This is already the second record year in a row in the number of arrivals.
A total of 63,970 undocumented migrants arrived in Spain last year.
More and more people have come to the Canary Islands since the Mediterranean countries started tightening their immigration regulations.
According to the EU’s border security agency Frontex, illegal border crossings into the EU fell by 40 percent in January-November last year, but crossings via the Atlantic increased by 19 percent. Most of those who arrived in the EU via the Atlantic are citizens of Mali, Senegal and Morocco.
The route from West Africa to the Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean is known to be very dangerous.
The NGO Caminando Fronteras says that at least 10,457 migrants died or went missing trying to travel to Spain by sea between January 1 and December 5, 2024.
According to the organization, the number of deaths increased by 50 percent compared to the previous year. More people died or went missing last year than at any time since statistics began in 2007.
Source: AFP