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Moroccan navy rescues 247 migrants in Mediterranean Sea

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Published on: June 16, 2023

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Would-be immigrants stand on a coastguard vessel as they arrive at Tarifa’s harbour on August 11, 2014, after being rescued off the Spanish Coast. Spain’s coastguard today rescued more than 260 sub-Saharan African migrants crossing the Strait of Gibraltar on small boats. Many migrants from sub-Saharan Africa attempt to cross into Spain from Morocco, either by sea through the Strait of Gibraltar or overland, via the Spanish enclaves of Ceuta and Melilla in the extreme north of Morocco. AFP PHOTO / MARCOS MORENO

Morocco’s navy coast guards rescued 247 migrants from the Mediterranean Sea on Friday night and Saturday, the Moroccan army said in a statement.

The migrants, mostly Sub-Saharan Africans, were aboard small boats that were in trouble in the Mediterranean, according to the statement published by the official news agency MAP.

The migrants, including several women and children, were provided first aid by the Moroccan Navy units before being brought safely to Morocco’s Mediterranean ports, it added.

Morocco has become a hub for African migrants who seek to reach Europe for a better life.

Morocco has aborted 57,000 irregular migration attempts since the beginning of 2019, said the government spokesperson Mustapha El Khalfi on Thursday.

Morocco has also dismantled 100 irregular migration networks in the same period, he added.

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