translated from Spanish: 9 migrants killed in the Strait of Gibraltar

Barcelona.-A group of activists operating in the Strait of Gibraltar reported the death of 9 migrants traveling with three other people heading to Spain on a boat that was dumped by a wave. Alarm Phone staff spoke with one of the three survivors, which confirmed that nine passengers from Senegal died after the boat capsized in the Strait of Gibraltar, activist Maurice Stierl said. The boat left the Moroccan port of Tangier on Tuesday in the Dawn. Stierl said his network of activists informed the Moroccan and Spanish authorities that migrants needed to be rescued shortly after they received a distress call that morning. A Moroccan team arrived on the boat until Wednesday, according to the survivor interviewed by Alarm Phone staff. He said he was the first person to be taken out of the water by a rope, while a woman who tried to grab that same rope drowned.

According to the survivor, their boat left from Tangier at 1am on April 30. The weather was rough throughout their journey. When They called the Alarmphone & tried to send us their GPS, a large wave broke, the boat capsized, and they had no possibility to reach out anymore. — Alarm Phone (@alarm_phone)
May 3, 2019

The Spanish Maritime Safety and Rescue society indicated that it sent a helicopter on Wednesday to assist in the search for missing passengers. A Moroccan team rescued the survivors and recovered a corpse. A humanitarian aid group in Morocco, Walking borders, reported that four migrants had disappeared on Thursday from a separate boat in the Strait of Gibraltar. A fisherman rescued eight people who had been on the boat, who asked for help on Wednesday, tweeted Helena Maleno, activist of Walking borders. The Government of Spain has increasingly ceded maritime bailouts to Morocco as part of a plan to reduce the number Of migrants arriving in Europe from North Africa.

However, activist groups such as Alarm Phone claim that the Moroccan Coast Guard lacks the means and training to rescue migrants at sea. The number of people who arrived in Europe through the Western Mediterranean route descended to 588 in March, the lowest monthly figure since 2017, according to the International Organization for Migration. Apparently more migrants try to make the journey through the Warmer weather. IOM reported 729 from 1 to 28 April. 



Original source in Spanish