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Algeria, Mauritania Foil Mass Migrant Crossings to Europe
(MENAFN) Algeria and Mauritania announced Wednesday that they had intercepted or rescued more than 500 irregular migrants attempting sea crossings toward Europe, as departures from North and West Africa continue.
Algeria's Defense Ministry reported that its coast guard blocked 223 irregular migrants from crossing toward Europe aboard traditional boats over the past week.
According to the ministry's weekly statement, the interceptions took place along Algeria's coastline between Aug. 12 and 18.
During the same period, army units elsewhere in the country arrested another 211 irregular migrants of various nationalities, the ministry said, though it offered no further detail on those arrests.
Earlier in the week, Interior Minister Said Sayoud led a coordination meeting at government headquarters to assess the country's anti-migration efforts and review measures already in place.
Sayoud directed authorities to tighten cooperation between agencies and step up enforcement along the coast during the summer months, an Interior Ministry statement said.
The goal, according to the statement, is to disrupt smuggling networks and block organized attempts at illegal sea crossings.
Departures from Algeria's eastern coast toward Italy's Sardinia remain relatively limited, while the bulk of crossings originate from the country's central and western coastlines, headed for Spain — including the Balearic Islands and the Iberian mainland.
Separately, Mauritania's coast guard said it rescued 315 irregular migrants off Nouadhibou, in the country's northwest, on Wednesday.
In a statement, the coast guard said its teams intercepted a boat that had departed from Gambia carrying the 315 passengers.
Those aboard — including women, children and infants — were found in “difficult humanitarian conditions,” the statement said.
The group comprised 191 Senegalese nationals, among them three women and 29 children; 120 Gambians, including 40 women and 11 children; and one Malian national, according to the coast guard.
All passengers were rescued and processed under applicable legal and humanitarian procedures, with necessary care provided, the statement added.
Mauritania remains a key transit hub for irregular migrants from sub-Saharan Africa seeking passage to Spain's Canary Islands and onward to mainland Europe.
Algeria's Defense Ministry reported that its coast guard blocked 223 irregular migrants from crossing toward Europe aboard traditional boats over the past week.
According to the ministry's weekly statement, the interceptions took place along Algeria's coastline between Aug. 12 and 18.
During the same period, army units elsewhere in the country arrested another 211 irregular migrants of various nationalities, the ministry said, though it offered no further detail on those arrests.
Earlier in the week, Interior Minister Said Sayoud led a coordination meeting at government headquarters to assess the country's anti-migration efforts and review measures already in place.
Sayoud directed authorities to tighten cooperation between agencies and step up enforcement along the coast during the summer months, an Interior Ministry statement said.
The goal, according to the statement, is to disrupt smuggling networks and block organized attempts at illegal sea crossings.
Departures from Algeria's eastern coast toward Italy's Sardinia remain relatively limited, while the bulk of crossings originate from the country's central and western coastlines, headed for Spain — including the Balearic Islands and the Iberian mainland.
Separately, Mauritania's coast guard said it rescued 315 irregular migrants off Nouadhibou, in the country's northwest, on Wednesday.
In a statement, the coast guard said its teams intercepted a boat that had departed from Gambia carrying the 315 passengers.
Those aboard — including women, children and infants — were found in “difficult humanitarian conditions,” the statement said.
The group comprised 191 Senegalese nationals, among them three women and 29 children; 120 Gambians, including 40 women and 11 children; and one Malian national, according to the coast guard.
All passengers were rescued and processed under applicable legal and humanitarian procedures, with necessary care provided, the statement added.
Mauritania remains a key transit hub for irregular migrants from sub-Saharan Africa seeking passage to Spain's Canary Islands and onward to mainland Europe.
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