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Canary Islands: a sharp increase in migrant arrivals
Canary Islands: a sharp increase in migrant arrivals
(France 2)
Illegal immigration from West Africa has increased by 541% in Europe. The Canary Islands therefore became more frequently used by exiles.
Their faces are marked by the grueling crossing. Men spent more than a week in the ocean, risking their lives, before arriving in Tenerife (Spain). Nearly 70,000 migrants have reached the Canary Islands since 2020, which has become an increasingly popular route for exiles. When they arrive, some are at the end of their strength and sometimes, they have come close to death. As a result, many need to be treated in hospital.
Precarious conditions
Since 2020, many migrants have passed through Morocco, but in recent months, many exiles have come directly from West Africa and more particularly from Senegal. “Everything was difficult, we didn’t have enough water, you sit in one place all the time for eight days, you don’t move“, says one of them.
The Canary Islands route is considered one of the deadliest. At least 3,000 people have died there since 2020, according to the International Organization for Migration. Most are hosted in camps on the different Canary Islands, sometimes in precarious conditions.
