Seventeen migrants are feared to have died while attempting to reach Spain’s Balearic Islands after a 15-day journey across the Mediterranean Sea, according to Spanish authorities.
The incident came to light after two survivors were rescued from a boat near the coast of Mallorca. The two, believed to be from North African countries, showed signs of severe malnutrition and dehydration and were taken to hospital, Spain’s regional government office said.
According to the survivors, 19 people were originally on board the vessel. Spanish authorities have not yet independently confirmed the reported deaths, while an emergency helicopter has been deployed to search the area where the rescue took place.
The boat was found around 20 kilometers southwest of Mallorca in the Mediterranean Sea.
In a separate incident near Mallorca on Tuesday, authorities rescued 17 migrants alive and recovered two bodies from another boat believed to have been carrying around 30 people.
Migration route from Algeria sees sharp increase
The route from Algeria to the Balearic Islands has become the fastest-growing migration corridor into the European Union during the first half of this year, despite an overall decline in migrant arrivals across the bloc, according to the EU border agency Frontex.
Meanwhile, the total number of migrants arriving in Spain has fallen by nearly 25%, according to the latest figures from Spain’s Interior Ministry.
Frontex says that over the past year, human trafficking networks have increasingly shifted their operations from Morocco to Algeria due to less stringent controls and have begun using faster boats.
Spain has also stepped up cooperation with Algeria over the past year in an effort to better manage irregular migration.
