The UN company’s feedback comply with reviews on Monday that dozens of individuals are lacking after a ship carrying a whole lot of individuals capsized within the waters off the coast of the Mauritanian capital, Nouakchott.
Latest months have continued to see a surge within the variety of individuals setting out from north and west African international locations together with Senegal, Mauritania and Morocco. Their closing vacation spot is commonly the Canary Islands.
“UNHCR, the UN refugee company, is deeply saddened by this tragic shipwreck that has resulted within the deaths and disappearances of quite a few individuals off the coast of Mauritania,” stated spokesperson Shabia Mantoo. “The vessel, which was following the West Atlantic route, capsized close to Nouakchott, claiming the lives of not less than 15 individuals with many others nonetheless lacking.”
In response to the UN migration company, IOM, roughly 300 individuals together with girls and kids boarded a wood “pirogue” boat in The Gambia, spending seven days at sea earlier than the tragedy occurred. Ms. Mantoo famous that this was the second lethal shipwreck within the area reported this month, after one firstly of July.
Lethal dangers
The so-called “West Atlantic route” off the coast of West Africa “is without doubt one of the deadliest routes on this planet, with 1000’s of migrants and refugees drowning in recent times”, the UNHCR official informed journalists in Geneva.
Since June final 12 months, greater than 76 boats with roughly 6,130 survivors have disembarked in Mauritania, whereas round 190 perished at sea earlier than the 2 newest tragedies.
The UN company reiterated its calls to the worldwide neighborhood to help authorized options for individuals in peril or in dire conditions in order that they will transfer throughout international locations and continents with out risking their lives, as is more and more the case.
“We do see a phenomena of those actions being taken by people who find themselves extraordinarily weak, they’re determined, their desperation and vulnerability generally exploited by smugglers, by traffickers, by others,” Ms. Mantoo stated. “So, there are a number of modalities which might be resorted to, however actually it speaks to the desperation in individuals resorting to those journeys as a result of there are merely what they understand to be no safer pathways.”
She added: “We’re calling for motion to deal with this as there have been many tragedies on this area and in others at sea and in addition on land. However there ought to be accountability certainly, for anybody that that income off the desperation of others.”
Lacking migrants tracked
In response to the UN migration company, from 1 January to fifteen July 2024 alone, greater than 19,700 migrants arrived irregularly within the Canary Islands utilizing this route in comparison with the identical interval in 2023, when 7,590 migrants had been recorded – a rise of 160 per cent.
IOM’s Missing Migrants Project has recorded greater than 4,500 deaths and disappearances on this route since 2014, together with over 950 deaths final 12 months, the second deadliest on document.