Six people have died near the Moroccan town of Nador in eastern Morocco, authorities said on Saturday. The migrants drowned while trying to swim to a canoe parked at sea, between rocks.
About 54 migrants tried to swim to a rubber dinghy on Saturday (July 22nd) near El Kallat beach in the municipality of Iaazzanene, near the city of Nador, with the aim of reaching Spain.
Bad weather conditions in the Mediterranean, rough seas and the smuggler’s inability to maneuver after his boat ran aground on rocks led to the death by drowning of six people, authorities said. Forty-eight exiles managed to reach the shore.
Local authorities, gendarmes and Civil Protection agents, accompanied by medical teams, provided first aid to the survivors and recovered the bodies.
The nationality of the victims was not specified. According to the Moroccan Association for Human Rights (AMDH) in Nador, the six deceased migrants are Moroccans from Nador.
An investigation has been opened to find out the causes of the accident. Pending the conclusions of the investigation, the AMDH wonders: “How could this boat, known for its high speed and its drug smuggling activities, capsize? Was it pursued by a Moroccan ship before the incident?”
More crossings
Crossings from the coasts of northern Morocco are often made on board high-speed inflatable boats which can also be used for drug operations. The exiles also took to the sea aboard makeshift boats, kayaks, canoes, jet skis, and sometimes even by swimming.
Many migrants and Moroccans are also trying to reach the Spanish enclave of Melilla, stuck to Nador, in the hope of then being transferred to the European continent. In recent months, many people have died trying to swim to the tightly guarded enclave.
“The process is generally the same: they try to enter the [Moroccan] port of Beni Ansar early in the morning, at dawn, so as not to be seen” and then swim towards Melilla for a hundred meters, explained in 2021 Ali Zoubeidi, professor at Hassan 1er University and immigration specialist.
900 migrants rescued from July 10 to 17
Attempts to cross the Mediterranean from the northwest coast of Africa and the coasts of Morocco, and Western Sahara to Europe have been increasing since the beginning of June.
The Moroccan navy announced last week that it had rescued nearly 900 irregular migrants during the period from July 10 to 17, mostly of sub-Saharan origin.
NGOs regularly report deadly shipwrecks – the unofficial tolls of which, according to them, amount to tens, if not hundreds of deaths – in Moroccan, Spanish or international waters.
Moroccan authorities say they have foiled 26,000 irregular emigration attempts in the first five months of 2023.