Dozens of Pakistani Dead After Migrant Boat Capsizes on Way to Canary Islands

barcelona - Fifty migrants, including 44 Pakistanis, have died on their way from Mauritania to the Canary Islands.

Migrant Boat Tragedy

Fifty migrants, including 44 Pakistanis, have tragically lost their lives in a boat capsizing incident while en route from Mauritania to the Canary Islands. The NGO Caminando Fronteras revealed that the fishing boat departed on January 2 and capsized on the thirteenth day of the journey. Out of the 86 migrants on board, 36 were rescued by the Moroccan rescue services, raising concerns that more individuals might have been on board than initially reported.

Among the survivors were at least three women, including a teenager. The Canary Islands route has been marked by a significant number of migrant deaths, with over 10,000 fatalities occurring last year alone, making it one of the deadliest migration routes globally. In response to this latest tragedy, Canarian Premier Fernando Clavijo has called on Madrid and Brussels to take action, emphasizing the need to address the humanitarian crisis and prevent further loss of life in the treacherous Atlantic crossing.

The high number of Pakistani victims highlights an emerging trend of migrants from Pakistan, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, and Syria increasingly undertaking the perilous journey to the Canary Islands. Frontex had previously warned about the expansion of human trafficking networks targeting Asian nationals and Sahel migrants. As Asians surpass Algerians and Moroccans in migrant numbers along this route, they often travel from the UAE or Qatar to Senegal or Mauritania before embarking on the dangerous sea voyage, paying higher fees to traffickers compared to African migrants due to perceived differences in authorities' scrutiny.