BAMAKO/LAS PALMAS, Spain: At least 69 people died after a boat headed from West Africa to the Canary Islands capsized off Morocco on Dec. 19, Malian authorities said, as data showed deaths of migrants attempting to reach Spain surged to an all-time high in 2024.
The makeshift boat was carrying around 80 people when it capsized. Only 11 survived, the Ministry of Malians Abroad said in a statement on Thursday, after collecting information to reconstruct the incident.
A crisis unit has been set up to monitor the situation, it added.
The Atlantic migration route from the coast of West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands, typically used by African migrants trying to reach mainland Spain, has seen a surge this year, with 41,425 arrivals in January-November already exceeding last year’s record 39,910.
Years of conflict in the Sahel region that includes Mali, unemployment and the impact of climate change on farming communities are among the reasons why people attempt the crossing.
One person died among 300 people who arrived on six boats on Friday on the island of El Hierro in the Canaries, according to the Red Cross.
The Atlantic route, which includes departure points in Senegal and Gambia, Mauritania and Morocco, is the world’s deadliest, according to migrant aid group Walking Borders.
In its annual report released this week, the group said 9,757 migrants died at sea in 2024 trying to reach the Spanish archipelago from Africa’s Atlantic coast. A record 10,457 people — or nearly 30 people a day — died attempting to reach Spain this year from all routes, according to the report.
The route departing from Mauritania, which has been particularly well used this year by migrants leaving the Sahel region, was the deadliest, accounting for 6,829 deaths.
Walking Borders blamed a lack of action or arbitrary rescues and the criminalization of migrants for the surge in deaths at sea, accusing governments of “the prioritization of immigration control over the right to life.”
At least 69 migrants killed in shipwreck off Morocco on deadly route to Spain
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At least 69 migrants killed in shipwreck off Morocco on deadly route to Spain
- The Atlantic migration route from the coast of West Africa to Spain’s Canary Islands has seen a surge this year
Ukraine, US, Europe still seeking common ground in peace talks, French official says
- French presidency official: “The European perspective of Ukraine is clear and it’s a realistic perspective”
PARIS: Ukraine, the United States and European powers are still working to find a joint position that would outline the contours of a peace deal, including security guarantees for Kyiv, that could be taken to Russia, a French presidency official said on Friday.
“Our goal is to have a common foundation that is solid for negotiation. This common ground must unite Ukrainians, Americans and Europeans,” the official told reporters in a briefing.
“It should allow us, together, to make a negotiating offer, a solid, lasting peace offer that respects international law and Ukraine’s sovereign interests, an offer that American negotiators are willing to bring to the Russians.”
The official said there was no joint document yet, but all sides would carry on negotiations in the coming days through various calls and meetings. He did not say whether Washington had set a deadline.
Kyiv is under pressure from the White House to secure a quick peace but is pushing back on a US-backed plan proposed last month that many see as favorable to Moscow.
Britain, France and Germany, along with other European partners and Ukraine, have been working frantically in the last few weeks to refine the original US proposals that envisaged Kyiv giving up swathes of its territory to Moscow, abandoning its ambition to join NATO and accepting limits on the size of its armed forces.
The French official said the talks aimed at narrowing differences with the United States and centered on territory and potential security guarantees for Ukraine once there is a peace accord.
Those discussions include the possibility of a NATO Article-5 type clause involving Washington that would seek to reassure Kyiv in case it was once again attacked by Russia, the official said.
The Europeans have also faced pressure in recent weeks with some American proposals touching on elements that concern NATO and the European Union, including suggestions on fast-tracking Ukraine’s accession to the bloc.
“The European perspective of Ukraine is clear and it’s a realistic perspective,” the official said. “That is what we are committed to and it is up to the Europeans and the Ukrainians to agree on how to proceed.”
