DAKAR: A boat carrying nearly a hundred migrants hoping to reach Europe from Senegal ran aground on Tuesday morning in the capital city of Dakar, according to local authorities.
The migrants were likely aiming to sail another 1,500 kilometers (about 937 miles) across the Atlantic Ocean to Spain’s Canary Islands, which has reemerged as a major migrant transit route since 2020.
Nearly 47,000 people disembarked in the Canaries in 2024, an increase from the nearly 40,000 in 2023, according to Spanish Interior Ministry figures. Many undertake the journey in large, open top boats known as pirogues.
“We were informed of the interception of a pirogue full of migrants who wanted to leave for Europe,” said Abdou Aziz Guèye, mayor of Ouakam, the neighborhood where the boat ran aground.
The pirogue was first spotted by fishermen who lent the occupants an engine, as they no longer had one, said Guèye.
“It is a distressing sight. The captain reportedly fled with the engine,” Guèye said.
Although the canoe landed in Ouakam, its journey did not originate there, the mayor said.
When the boat arrived local police set up a temporary processing center to conduct identity checks on the passengers.
The Atlantic crossing is one of the deadliest in the world. While there is no accurate death toll because of the lack of information on departures from West Africa, the Spanish migrant rights group Walking Borders estimates the victims are in the thousands this year alone.
“Illegal emigration is not over. It’s a phenomenon that continues,” said Guèye, who cautioned migrants from making the risky journey.
While most migrants leaving Senegal are young men, aid workers in the Canary Islands say they are increasingly seeing women and children risk their lives as well.
Last year, the EU signed a 210 million euro deal with Mauritania to stop smugglers from launching boats to Spain. But statistics show trans-Atlantic migration from West Africa has continued, even as irregular border crossings in Europe have been falling steadily.
In Senegal, winter sees an increase in attempted journeys as the seasonal change lowers the intensity of waves. However, migrants still choose to take the risk throughout the year.
Boat with over 100 migrants runs aground in Dakar, Senegal
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Boat with over 100 migrants runs aground in Dakar, Senegal
- The migrants were likely aiming to sail another 1,500 kilometers across the Atlantic Ocean to Spain’s Canary Islands
- Although the canoe landed in Ouakam, its journey did not originate there, the mayor said
Russia expels German diplomat in tit-for-tat move
- Moscow also rejected Germany’s accusations of espionage as “baseless” and accused Berlin of whipping up “a spirit of spy mania“
- Germany in January summoned Russia’s ambassador and ordered the expulsion of a diplomat
MOSCOW: Russia said Thursday it was expelling a German diplomat after Berlin last month threw out a Russian official it accused of being a spy handler.
The foreign ministry said it had issued a “note declaring a diplomatic employee of the German Embassy in Moscow persona non grata” in what was a “symmetrical response.”
Moscow also rejected Germany’s accusations of espionage as “baseless” and accused Berlin of whipping up “a spirit of spy mania.”
Germany in January summoned Russia’s ambassador and ordered the expulsion of a diplomat suspected of being the handler of a woman arrested on espionage charges.
Russia at the time dismissed the allegations as baseless and vowed a response.
German Foreign Minister Johann Wadephul on Thursday called the expulsion “completely unacceptable.”
“While our diplomats abide by the law, Russia relies on escalation and espionage under the guise of diplomacy,” Wadephul said during a visit to Brunei.
Wadephul said that “Russia’s latest unfriendly act... merely demonstrates once again that Russia prioritizes unjustified retaliation over diplomacy,” and added that “we reserve the right to take further action.”
The expelled German diplomat is part of the military attaché staff of the German Embassy in Moscow, Wadephul said.
Western states have ejected dozens of alleged Russian spies over the last decade as relations soured even before the war in Ukraine.
The expulsions have typically triggered a tit-for-tat response from Moscow.
