Morocco's navy rescues more than 400 Europe-bound migrants

Makeshift boats ran into trouble during dangerous Mediterranean Sea crossing

Unaccompanied minors who crossed into Spain sit outside a warehouse used as a temporary shelter near the border of Morocco and Spain. AP

The Moroccan navy has rescued more than 400 migrants since Thursday after their makeshift boats ran into trouble on the dangerous sea crossing to Europe, state media reported.

The 438 migrants, most of them from Sub-Saharan Africa, were given first aid before being taken to the nearest Moroccan port, an officer told the state-run MAP news agency on Monday.

MAP also reported that Moroccan authorities on Sunday had intercepted 58 migrants, including 11 women, off Laayoune in Western Sahara.

The migrants, also from Sub-Saharan Africa, had attempted to cross to the Canary Islands, it said.

This month, a merchant ship rescued 33 migrants who had spent two weeks adrift in the Atlantic Ocean en route to the Canary Islands. Fourteen fellow migrants lost their lives.

Migrant arrivals on the Spanish archipelago have surged since late 2019.

At its shortest, the sea crossing from the Moroccan coast is around 100 kilometres, but strong currents make it very dangerous.

The vessels used are often overcrowded and in poor condition, adding to the risks.

In the first six months of this year, a total of 2,087 migrants died trying to reach Spain, Caminando Fronteras, a Spanish NGO that monitors migrant flows, reported.