ALICANTE – Until now, the Canary Islands or the Andalucian coast near the Strait of Gibraltar seem to be the target of migrants who want to reach Europe by sea from Africa. Yet many migrants arrive in boats to eastern Spain and the Balearic Islands.
Early Sunday morning, a ‘patera’ (small boat) with 16 people on board arrived at Poniente Beach in La Villajoyosa in the province of Alicante. Moreover, the passengers included three children, two of them babies aged three and eleven months.
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The Guardia Civil saw the boat just before 5.00 am around five metres from the beach. However, it reached land in the Cala de Torres. Emergency services rescued all 16 people, eleven of them adults, three of which were women. The rescued migrants were then transferred to the port of Alicante, where Red Cross staff looked after those that needed medical or psychosocial care. According to initial reports, all individuals appeared to be in good health. However, the Guardia Civil is still trying to locate some migrants who left the place before the emergency services arrived.
Arrival in Javea
Another boat with 10 people on board arrived in Jávea at the Cala del Portitxol on Saturday. These migrants were also transferred to the port of Alicante. The Red Cross confirmed that all persons on board were adult males who were in good health upon arrival.
Arrivals in Mallorca and Ibiza
Also on Saturday, two boats arrived at the Balearic Islands. One with 4 migrants in Ibiza and one with 23 migrants in Mallorca. The Maritime Service of the Guardia Civil and the Palma Rescue Brigade rescued 23 people from a boat in the early hours of the morning. It was located in the waters south of the island of Cabrera, south of Mallorca, according to a statement from the Delegation of the Government in the Balearic Islands. The boat was spotted by the Integrated External Surveillance System (SIVE) at 3.40 am, after which the rescue was carried out.
On the same day, 4 migrants of North African origin were discovered after reaching the coast of Cala Espert, in the municipality of Sante Eulària in Ibiza. Moreover, they were all in good health. A resident saw the four land around 6.00 am and alerted the Guardia Civil who arrived to help the migrants.
Arrivals in Alicante
On Sunday, July 30, two boats arrived in the port of Alicante with about thirty immigrants. Monday, July 31, a third boat arrived with 17 people. The Coast Guard of Alicante carried out the rescue. On the boats were a one and a half-year-old baby, five minors and two women. The rest were all men according to the Red Cross. All were apparently in good health and the Red Cross took care of them.
This year 39 boats arrived in the Balearic Islands
With these arrivals, a total of 39 boats and 690 people have arrived on the archipelago this year, according to the count of the Spanish news agency EFE.
In 2022, 174 irregular vessels were detected on the coasts of the Balearic Islands, with a total of 2,579 on board, according to data from the Ministry of the Interior. These continued arrivals highlight the ongoing migration situation in the region.
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