Nearly 2,200 migrants reach Spain's Canary Islands in two days

Nearly 2,200 migrants have reached Spain’s Canary Islands by boat over the past two days, Spain’s maritime rescue service said on Sunday.

The archipelago off northwest Africa is a major entry point for migrants, mainly from West Africa, attempting the dangerous Atlantic crossing in makeshift boats. More than 13,000 of the just over 28,000 people who arrived in Spain by sea between January and the end of October landed in the Canary Islands, according to the Interior Ministry.

Spain declared a migration emergency on the islands on Tuesday following a rise in arrivals in recent weeks, particularly from sub-Saharan Africa. The country is due to hold an early general election in two weeks.

The rescue service said it had assisted 1,324 people aboard 14 dinghies, most of whom reached El Hierro, an island with a population of 12,000. That figure approached the route’s daily rescue record of 1,461 people, set on November 7, 2020.

Red Cross staff meet migrants at the port, providing dry clothes, food and water and registering their arrival, Dácil León, the organization’s emergency coordinator in Tenerife, told public broadcaster RTVE.

The Atlantic crossing between West Africa and the Canary Islands is one of the world’s deadliest migration routes. Although the islands lie about 65 miles (105 kilometers) from the nearest African coast, many migrants take longer routes to evade security forces. Those journeys can last days or weeks, with most boats departing from Mauritania.

Read moreSpain’s Canary Islands overwhelmed by migrant arrivals

In July, tens of thousands of people crossed from Morocco into Spain’s North African territory of Ceuta in just two days, causing chaos and reigniting debate over immigration in Europe and beyond. More than 140 people died making the journey.

Most of those who crossed left within days, but up to 15,000 remained.