First illegal migrants arrive in Canary Islands in 2025 with two deaths confirmed

Madrid, Jan 2 (IANS) Spanish Maritime Rescue services confirmed on Thursday that a total of 366 illegal migrants arrived in Spain on the first day of 2025, with 268 of those reaching the Spanish-controlled Canary Islands in the Atlantic Ocean.

A further 98 landed in the Balearic Islands (Mallorca, Menorca, Ibiza, and Formentera).

The start of the year also brought the first tragedy with two dead bodies discovered inside one of the dinghies which reached the south coast of Tenerife (Canary Islands).

2025's first arrivals of migrant boats, which are usually flimsy wooden vessels that are completely unsuitable for the dangerous waters of the Atlantic Ocean, follows a chaotic end to 2024.

The last week of the year saw 1,933 migrants (according to rescue services) complete the dangerous crossing from the northwest coast of Africa to the Canary Islands, which is over 100 kilometres long at its shortest point, Xinhua news agency reported.

The arrival of these 1,933 people in a total of 34 boats, has stretched the resources of the Canary Islands, with the regional government calling on the Spanish central government and the country's 16 remaining Autonomous Communities to help relocate the migrants.

A total of 60,216 migrants have arrived in Spain irregularly from January 1 to December 15, 2024, 14.5 per cent more than in the same period in 2023 when 52,591 arrived. Of the total, 43,737 arrived in the Canary Islands, according to the latest figures from the Spanish Ministry of the Interior.

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