Madrid, July 1 (RHC)-- Maritime authorities of the Iberian country confirmed on Sunday the rescue of 130 African migrants trying to reach the coasts of southern Spain in precarious boats.
The Sociedad de Salvamento y Seguridad Marítima (Maritime Safety and Rescue Society) announced that it had rescued 16 women and children. The migrants were drifting in two boats in the Alboran Sea, a western part of the Mediterranean Sea.
Spanish authorities also reported that the people were in good health and had been taken to the ports of Motril and Almeria located in the region of Andalusia, southeast of the country.
Around 300 people have been picked up so far this year in small boats unfit for open water according to figures from the Spanish Ministry of Public Works. The majority of the rescues took place in the Strait of Gibraltar and some in waters further east.
It is estimated that a total of 8,834 refugees arrived in Spain by sea between the beginning of the year and this month. On the other hand, the International Organization for Migration (IOM) said in a recent report that at least 166 people trying to reach the Iberian country died or disappeared in the Mediterranean Sea.
"Between January and December 2018, authorities in Spain registered the arrival of 65,325 migrants and refugees. According to available data, this is the highest number of arrivals reported since 1999, the IOM adds in its report.
