A complete family of ten Afghan refugees, including four women and three girls, arrived on Monday night in El Hierro on the Mauritanian cayuco that surprised emergency services because 63 of its 75 occupants were of Asian origin, not African, as reported by Efe and confirmed by emergency services sources. The family consisted of a man, his two wives, and the seven children of those two marriages: two young women and a young man who were already of legal age, a twelve-year-old boy, and three girls aged six, ten, and 14. Security forces are investigating whether some typical migration flows from the Mediterranean and the Balkan route are focusing on the Canary Islands as an entry point to Europe, following the arrival in El Hierro of two cayucos with more than half a hundred Asians each. In addition to the aforementioned, at the end of August, another boat was rescued with 174 people on board, 48 of whom were Pakistani and three Syrians.
The people rescued on Monday reported that they left their home in 2021 (the year of the return of the Taliban to power) and spent two years traveling to various places in Afghanistan. They then left the country through Iran, where they stayed for six months, before traveling to Africa. First, they spent three months in Guinea and then another three in Mauritania, before boarding the night of October 9th to 10th in Nuakchot on a cayuco bound for the Canary Islands. They made the journey with 53 people from Pakistan and twelve young Africans from Senegal, Mali, Mauritania, and Gambia. According to Frontex data collected by Efe, 2,618 Pakistanis have entered Europe irregularly so far this year. The majority, 1,581, entered through the central Mediterranean; 484 through the eastern Mediterranean; and 444 through the Balkan land route. As for the Afghans, 9,743 have clandestinely accessed Europe in 2024: 7,824 through the eastern Mediterranean, 1,341 through the Balkans, and 450 through the central Mediterranean.
Between January and October 15th, 32,878 people arrived in the Canary Islands by sea, 39.7% more than in the same period the previous year (23,537), according to data provided by the Ministry of the Interior. In the first 15 days of October, 2,070 migrants arrived on the islands, a 75.8% decrease compared to the same two weeks in 2023. A total of 45,122 migrants have arrived in Spain irregularly so far this year, a 22.6% increase from the same period in 2023.
The arrival of large groups of Asian migrants on cayucos in the Canary Islands has raised concerns about potential new migration routes to Europe. The humanitarian crisis in Afghanistan and other conflict zones may be prompting more individuals to seek refuge by crossing the Mediterranean and entering Europe through unconventional means. The increase in irregular migration to Spain, particularly through the Canary Islands, highlights the need for comprehensive solutions to address the root causes of displacement and provide safe and legal pathways for those seeking asylum. Efforts to enhance border control and cooperation between countries are essential to manage migration flows effectively and protect the rights of migrants and refugees.
