Morocco migrant boat wreck left 70 missing: Mali

BAMAKO

The sinking of a vessel carrying migrants in Moroccan waters on Dec. 19 left 70 people missing, including 25 from Mali, that country's government said on Dec. 26.

Around 80 migrants were on board the vessel heading for Spain, with "25 young Malians unfortunately identified among the victims," the government said in a statement.

Eleven people were rescued, nine of whom were from Mali, it said in the statement, which cited embassies in the region, officials, victims' families and survivors.

Thousands of migrants attempt perilous sea crossings from African shores each year in hopes of reaching Europe, often in flimsy makeshift vessels.

More than 10,400 migrants have died trying to reach Spain since 2024, including a record number heading for the Canary Islands, the Spanish migration NGO Caminando Fronteras said in a report on Dec. 26.

That was an average of about 30 a day, making it the deadliest year in the organization’s records.

At their closest point, the Canaries lie 100 kilometers off the coast of North Africa. The shortest route is between the coastal town of Tarfaya in southern Morocco and the Canary island of Fuerteventura.

But to avoid controls, smugglers sometimes take longer, more dangerous journeys, navigating west into the open Atlantic before turning north to the Canaries.