At least 951 people, including 49 children, have died while trying to reach Spain by sea in the first six months of 2023, according to a monitoring group. In a report released on Thursday, Caminando Fronteras (Walking Borders) said the people lost at sea hailed from 14 countries: Algeria, Cameroon, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Guinea, Ivory Coast, Mali, Morocco, The Gambia, Senegal, Sri Lanka, Sudan, Syria and The Gambia. The group, which compiled its findings from official sources, refugee communities and rescue organisations on the ground, said 19 boats went missing with all the people on board between January and June. Caminando Fronteras blamed Spain and Morocco for a lack of coordination and for failing to conduct search-and-rescue operations in time. It also listed other factors that led to the tragedies, including the inadequacy of resources, and bad practices in rescue operations. The group said the two countries were more concerned with “politics” than with rescuing those stranded at sea.
SOURCE: AL JAZEERA