550 Illegal Migrants Arrive at Canary Islands: Spain

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Earlier this month, Spanish migration rights group, Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders), said that 50 people had died when a boat capsized on its way to the islands. Surprisingly, it was reported that 44 of them were not from Africa but from Pakistan.

Spain says more than 550 migrants have arrived on its Canary Islands off the north-west coast of Africa in the past two days. Of that, one person died, Spain’s maritime rescue service said recently, adding that most of the illegal migrants are from West Africa.

Interior Ministry figures showed that in the first half of January, 3,409 migrants reached Spain by sea, the vast majority to the Canaries. Last year, almost two-thirds of the record 61,000 people who crossed illegally into Spain, landed in the islands, including several thousand unaccompanied minors. The Canary Islands are just 105 kilometers from Africa at the closest point.

Earlier this month, Spanish migration rights group, Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders), said that 50 people had died when a boat capsized on its way to the islands. Surprisingly, it was reported that 44 of them were not from Africa but from Pakistan. The European Union’s border agency, Frontex, said irregular crossings into the bloc fell by 38%overall in 2024. However, it rose by 18% on the Atlantic route between West Africa and the Canary Islands.

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The International Organization for Migration says at least 5,000 migrants have died or gone missing on the migratory route since it began keeping records in 2014.