More than 160 migrants rescued from sea off Mauritania
The boat had set out from Banjul, the capital of The Gambia, and sailed for about eight days before being spotted by coastguard units.
On Tuesday, the Mauritanian coastguard rescued over 160 migrants, including 17 children, from a distressed boat in their waters. This marked the second significant emergency operation in a week by the coastguard. The migrants were severely exhausted and apprehensive due to the boat's precarious condition. Earlier this week, a coastguard vessel had already saved more than 300 migrants from a drifting vessel off Mauritania's Atlantic coast.
The rescued individuals originated from countries such as Senegal, The Gambia, Guinea, and Mali. The boat had embarked from Banjul, The Gambia's capital, and had been at sea for approximately eight days before being discovered. Upon rescue, all 161 individuals were transferred to a reception center in Nouakchott, Mauritania's capital.
These migrants are part of a continuous stream of thousands of young people who annually embark on the dangerous Atlantic crossing in rickety boats, attempting to reach Europe via Spain's Canary Islands. Many are driven by poverty and seek passage despite Europe's stringent visa restrictions and border controls.
Written by urgent.news from Free Malaysia Today's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.
