More than 10,400 migrants died or went missing at sea trying to reach Spain in 2024, a year marked by a record influx of migrants to the Canary Islands.
The sinking of a migrant boat en route to Spain left nearly 70 people missing, including 25 Malians, in Moroccan waters on December 19, the Malian government said.
“The boat, bound for Spain, apparently carried 80 passengers initially,” and “25 young Malians were unfortunately identified among the victims,” the government said in a statement on December 26. Eleven survivors were rescued, among whom “nine Malians were identified,” the press release said.
To confirm this assessment, “the ministry cross-referenced information from various sources, notably the embassies of Mali in Mauritania and Morocco, the families of the victims, local elected officials from the regions of origin and certain survivors,” explained the press release.
+ More than 10,000 deaths in 2024 +
More than 10,400 migrants died or went missing at sea while trying to reach Spain in 2024, a year marked by a record influx of migrants to the Canary Islands, according to a report published on December 26 by the Spanish NGO Caminando Fronteras , which relies on emergency calls from migrants at sea or their loved ones.
This figure represents an average of 30 deaths per day between January and December 15 of this year, the NGO said in a press release, adding that it alerts maritime authorities of boats in distress. “This year has become the deadliest” since its records began.
Mali, strongly affected by this latest migratory tragedy, has been plunged into a serious and multidimensional security crisis since the start of separatist and jihadist insurgencies in 2012.
Source: La Croix International
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